THE  THIRD 
DAUGHTER 


•By 
MRS.LU.  WHEAT 


oohg 


READ  W.  ROGERS 


DATE 


THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 


The  THIRD 
DAUGHTER 

A  STORY  of  CHINESE  HOME  LIFE 


By 
MRS.  Lu.  WHEAT 


Published  by 
ORIENTAL  PUBLISHING  CO. 

LOS  ANGELES.  CALIFORNIA 


COPYRIGHT,  1906 

By 
MRS.    L,U.    WHEAT 


PRESS  Of 

KIHOIIEY,  MOLES  &  counts  Co. 


2138846 


To  my  son 

and  to  the  sons  of  all  other  women 

this  little  book  is  dedicated 

in  motherly  love. 


SUMMARY. 

CHAPTER  ONE. 

Page 

The  Tien  Dong  Temple I 

The  Pilgrimage 2 

Hirati 7 

Ching  Fo  Praying  For  a  Son 9 

Sing  Lee u 

Dried  Carp 12 

A  Plague  of  Girls 13 

The  Bungalow 13 

The  Ancestral  Shrine 20 

Mystic  Voices 21 

The  Birth  of  the  Third  Daughter 23 


CHAPTER  Two. 

Page 

The  Priest's  Blessing 29 

The  Yin  and  Yang 30 

Insect    Music 32 

The  Cave  of  Infant  Ghosts 34 

The  Birth  of  a  Son 35 

A  Non-Cryer 38 

The  Sleeve  Dog 39 

The  Girls'  Festival 40 

The  Boys*  Festival 41 

Back  Into  the  Old  Channel 43 


CHAPTER  THREE. 

Page 

About  Foot  Binding 46 

The  Plum  Blossom  Festival.  .  . 48 

A  Slight  Misunderstanding 49 

Mrs.  Sing  Lee's  Visit 53 

The  Missionaries 55 

Work  in  Earnest 56 

Spirit  Recalling  Incense 57 

The  Plum  Trees 59 

A  Baptism  of  Petals 60 


CHAPTER  FOUR. 

Page 

A  New  Idea 61 

Another  Poem 62 

Consultation    64 

Music 67 

Morality  of  Both  Sexes 71 

The  Wife's  Confession 74 

Natural  Feet  Society 75 

Ching  Fo's  Refusal 79 

The  Confucian  Code 80 

Ah  Fat's  Opinion 81 


CHAPTER  FIVE. 

Page 

Straps  and  Bandages 85 

Wasted  to  a  Skeleton 86 

The  Subtle  Charm 87 

Ah  Moy's  Verse 89 

An  Old  Poem 90 

The  Star  Vega 92 

Preparing  Wedding  Clothes 94 

A  Bottle  of  Poison 95 

The  Week  of  Lamentation 96 

Marriage  of  Ah  Moy  No.  i 97 

Marriage  of  Ah  Moy  No.  2 100 

The   Drouth 101 

Parched  and  Brown  Rice  Fields 102 

Foreign  Affairs 104 


CHAPTER  Six. 

Page 

A  Storm  Gathering  Over  China 107 

The  Righteous  Defenders 108 

Pandemonium no 

Women's    Opinions i  i  i 

Rice  and  Mushrooms 115 

Ting  Ho M  ft 

Speeches    117 

Idle    Hand-Looms i  Hy 

Off  to  the  War.  121 


CHAPTER  SEVEN. 

Page 

Chinese    Heroines 123 

The  Rain  Dragon 124 

Fires  of  Worm  Wood 125 

A   Crusade 126 

Waiting  for  News 127 

Fleeing  to  a  Place  of  Safety 128 

A  Hard  Walk 132 

The  Old  King  Shan  Monastery 135 

Desolation 136 

The  Parting  of  the  Ways 138 

The  Grand  Committee  of  Two 139 


CHAPTER  EIGHT. 

Page 

Deciding  to  Sell  the  Third  Daughter 143 

Her  Courageous  Answer 144 

Repairing  the  Idols 145 

A  Stranger  147 

An  Offer  of  Food 150 

Haggling  About  the  Price 153 

A  Hard  Bargain 156 

The  Contract 157 

The    Knife 159 

A  "Cry  Baby" 160 


CHAPTER  NINE. 

Page 

The  House  Boat  of  Quong  Lung 161 

A  Half-Breed  Girl 164 

"Kali",  the  Mother 167 

The  Two  Girls  Contrasted 168 

Scenery  and  Scenes 171 

The  Ceremony  of  Farewell 173 

Cormorants 174 

The    One    Hundred    and    Eight    Foolish 

Desires    176 

The  Idol  Without  a  Jaw 177 

Henry  Ashman 178 

Indiscretions   179 

The  Slave  Market 181 

Days  of  Floating 182 

Shanghai 183 

Confusion    184 

Sikhs    185 


CHAPTER  TEN. 

Page 

Old  Wang 186 

Set  to  Work 190 

A  Storm 192 

Ready  for  Sale 193 

Customers   194 

Henry  Ashman's  Choice 195 

Ah  Moy's  Desire  for  Vengence 196 

Consulting  a  Priest 199 

Repose  200 

A  Picture  in  Ink 202 

The  Passions  Precious,  if  Properly  Un- 
derstood    203 

No  Sale  at  the  Slave  Market 206 

Ready  for  the  Flower  Boat 207 

A  New  Phase  of  the  Case 209 

At  the  Guild  Hall 213 

Ukeah   Grant *  214 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN. 

Page 

Hatred  for  Christianity 217 

The  Boxer  Proclamation 219 

Panic  Stricken  People 220 

A  Conglomerate 221 

Passports 222 

The  Hong  Kong  Maru 224 

Society  on  Board 226 

"The  Heathen  in  His  Blindness" 227 

Consultation  With  the  Cook .  228 


CHAPTER  TWELVE. 

Page 

At   Sea 230 

A  Salvation  Army  Bonnet 231 

"Brother"  Jones 233 

Explaining    235 

Dr.  Richardson 236 

Diagnosing  the  Case 238 

Counteracting  Influence 240 

The  Hawaiian  Islands 242 

Out  of  Sight  of  Land  Again 243 

Disinfecting    244 

Leaving  the  Ship 245 

Detention  of  the  Two  Girls 246 

Walking  Wrathfully  Toward  Chinatown  248 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN. 

Page 

A  Hall  of  Crockor  Alley 249 

A  Sentinel 251 

Chinese  Types 252 

The  Politics  of  Chinatown 254 

A  Trinity  of  Inconsistencies 255 

The  "Peace  Talker" 255 

Testimony  256 

The  Price  of  Girls 258 

Ho  Lung's  Address 259 

Ah  Foon's  Price 265 

A  New  Oath .  266 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN. 

Page 

Alone  on  Ship  Board 268 

The  Arrival  of  the  Missionaries 270 

Symptoms   272 

Another  Hearing 273 

Looking  for  Wing's  Father 275 

Trying  to  Lift  the  Veil 279 

A  Chinese  Choir 281 

Brother  Jones'  Illusions 282 

Callers   283 

Wing  a  Millionaire 284 

Applying  to  the  Court 286 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN. 

Page 

An  Order  of  Court 290 

Confusion  at  the  "Home" 292 

The  Ride  to  the  Hall  of  Justice 293 

Another  Case 294 

The  "General" 295 

Eloquence    297 

"Not  Guilty" 298 

A  Dissipated  Breath 299 

Ah  Moy's  Case  Called 300 

Testimony   301 

Nothing  in  the  Case 304 


CHAPTER  SIXTEEN. 

Page 

Quong  Lung's  Victory 307 

The  Old  Slave  Hall 308 

Through  Iron  Bars 309 

A  Child's  Song 310 

The  Knife 311 

A  Gash 314 

The  End  of  the  Struggle 315 

A  Loving  Little  Letter 317 

The  End   318 


PREFACE. 

The  author  of  this  little  book  does  not  for  a 
moment  hope  to  convey  to  the  western  mind 
any  very  accurate  idea  of  the  real  Chinaman, 
nor  of  the  Eurasian  or  half-breed  who  comes 
upon  the  stage  wherever  the  white  man  sets  his 
foot  or  pitches  his  tent,  but  if  the  reader  shall 
gather  from  its  pages  even  a  little  of  the  wisdom 
of  the  Far  East  and  see  its  application  to  our 
western  life,  it  will  be  recompense  for  weary 
days  and  long  sea  voyages. 

"Poor  old  China"  is  poor  old  China,  but  she 
has  honored  her  father  and  her  mother  and  her 
days  have  been  long  in  the  land — longer  than 
those  of  any  other  nation,  and  her  children  are 
still  in  splendid  physical  condition.  Would  you 
know  the  reason  for  her  great  age  and  for  the 
patient  endurance  and  the  strength  of  her  un- 


told  millions  ?  It  is  this :  for  ages  she  has  given 
attention  to  the  rights  of  the  unborn  child. 
More  than  two  thousand  years  ago  Pan  Chihi 
wrote  a  book  which  demanded  in  true  motherly 
style  that  the  women  of  China  be  given  all  the 
rights  that  would  inure  to  the  benefit  of  their 
offspring. 

"Whatever  protects  the  children,"  said  this 
wise  woman,  "protects  the  nation." 

There  is  no  doubt  in  the  mind  of  the  writer 
that  a  great  majority  of  the  Chinese  people 
have  been  more  or  less  familiar,  for  many  gen- 
erations, with  the  laws  that  govern  prenatal  life 
and  especially  with  the  great  law  which  points 
to  the  fact  that  the  thoughts  and  acts  of  today 
shape  the  lives  of  generations  to  come.  They 
were  probably  taught  by  the  priests,  twenty 
thousand  years  ago,  to  control  their  appetites 
because  of  the  immeasurable  damage  that  in- 
dulgence might  do  to  their  offspring.  And 
who  shall  say  whether,  for  that  reason,  they 


may  not  be  better  fitted  to  survive,  in  the  long 
run,  than  are  we  who  have  been  left  with  no 
training  on  the  subject.  Thinkers  who  have 
lived  long  enough  in  the  Far  East  to  see  be- 
neath the  surface  of  a  civilization  so  far 
removed  from  us  in  thought,  already  predict 
that  the  future  belongs  to  it.  If  the  fate  of 
nations  hangs  upon  their  fitness  to  produce 
sound  children,  it  certainly  looks  as  though  we 
of  the  west  might  fall  short  in  the  final  test.  It 
may  be  that  because  of  lack  of  knowledge  a 
fatal  weakness  has  developed  in  our  physical 
machinery  which  will  prove  incompatible  with 
long  life  and  that,  in  time,  we  shall  be  ex- 
terminated by  a  race  more  fertile  and  more 
conscientious  in  its  methods  than  we. 

The  serpent,  that  great  symbol  of  sex 
wisdom,  which  stands  for .  so  much  in  the 
Asiatic  mind,  was  perverted  by  our  fathers  into 
a  symbol  of  evil,  and  it  followed,  logically,  that 
the  sex  organs  were  surrounded  by  mystery  and 


suspicion,  and  our  children  left  to  grope  in 
darkness  toward  the  great  office  of  parenthood. 
Among  the  ancient  faiths  of  man,  the  serpent 
has  ever  stood  for  the  sacredness  of  the  creative 
act,  and  wherever  we  look  among  the  so-called 
"heathen",  we  find  this  symbol  of  the  passions 
respected  and  beloved. 

Knowing  but  little,  I  have  told  but  little,  of 
a  subject  that  has  in  it  the  latent  power  to 
re-shape  the  happenings  of  the  world ;  a  subject 
that  has  moods  and  tenses  and  inflections  be- 
yond the  power  of  tongue  to  tell  or  pen  to  write. 

MRS.  LU.  WHEAT. 

Los  Angeles,  California. 


To  Mr.  Wu  Ting  Fang  and  to  Mr.  Ho  Yow, 
Ministers  Plenipotentiary,  and  to  Mr.  Herbert 
Giles,  Professor  of  Chinese,  Cambridge,  Eng- 
land, the  author  feels  grateful  for  kindly 
assistance; 

Also,  to  D.  Appleton  &  Company,  of  New 
York,  and  to  A.  Roman  &  Company,  of  San 
Francisco,  California,  for  the  privilege  of 
quoting  copyrighted  poems. 


CHAPTER  I. 

"All,  whether  honorable  or  mean,  talented  or 
stupid,  male  or  female,  the  eater  of  ordinary 
food  or  he  who  restricts  himself  to  vegetables, 
the  man  who  has  left  his  family  or  he  who 
remains  at  home,  may  worship  Buddha." 

— Buddhist  Tract. 

The  Province  of  Honan  in  the  north  of  China 
is  noted  for  its  great  Tien  Dong  temple,  a  re- 
treat situated  in  a  mountain  fastness  and  made 
sacred  by  the  worship  of  ages.  Hundreds  of 
feet  above  the  fertile  plains  which  stretch,  rice 
laden  and  flower  laden,  in  every  direction,  the 
noble  structure  stands,  a  monument  to  the 
Buddhism  that  was,  rather  than  to  that 
which  is. 

The  way  up  is  not  so  hard  as  it  first  appears 
for  the  priests  have  carefully  arranged  the 
paths  to  avoid  steep  places  and,  knowing  that 


4  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

beliefs;  Taoism,  with  its  far-fetched  symbols 
and  metaphors,  Confucianism,  with  its  moral 
code;  Shinto  with  its  ancestor  worship  and 
Christianity,  with  its  Father  in  heaven,  moved 
side  by  side  and  Buddhism  claimed  them  all  for 
her  very  own.  Whether  the  "dewdrop  slips 
into  the  shining  sea",  or  whether  "the  sea  slips 
into  the  dewdrop"  made  very  little  difference  to 
these  worshippers;  for  their  creed  was  large 
enough  to  allow  each  man  his  individual  opin- 
ions. 

For  ages  uncounted  there  had  been  no  de- 
struction of  life  on  the  mountain,  whether  of 
bird,  or  of  beast,  whether  of  insect  or  of  rep- 
tile. This  scrupulous  regard  for  life  in  what- 
ever form  had  so  imbued  the  habits  of  the 
priests  that  nothing  showed  signs  of  fear.*  The 
birds  discharged  their  battery  of  song  undis- 
turbed ;  rabbits  hopped  along  the  path  with  un- 
questioning confidence;  and  rainbow  tinted 
lizards  darted  from  shelter  to  shelter. 


CHAPTER  ONE  5 

In  the  vicinity  of  the  buildings  the  very  old 
trees  were  carefully  propped  up  with  bamboo 
poles  that  they  might  hold  their  places  a  little 
longer;  hallowed  by  the  worship  of  ages,  the 
priests  regarded  them  as  too  sacred  to  be  neg- 
lected when  their  glory  had  departed,  so  tender 
hands  guarded  them  and  loving  eyes  were 
raised  to  them  as  they  crumbled  back  to  earth. 

To  the  right  of  the  path,  carved  out  of  the 
solid  rock,  was  a  lotus  bed  into  which  wounded 
reptiles  might  be  placed  to  linger  out  their 
allotted  time;  for  the  lotus  and  the  serpent  are 
ever  sacred  in  the  symbology  of  the  Asiatic 
man,  the  one  as  an  emblem  of  purity,  the  other 
standing  for  wisdom.  (Whether  it  be  a  fact  or 
not,  it  is  usually  believed  in  Asia  that  the  lotus 
propagates  without  the  pollen  form  another 
flower;  hence  the  Buddha  being  the  son  of  a 
virgin,  is  always  represented  in  art  as  sitting 
upon  a  lotus  flower.  The  serpent  also  repre- 


6  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

sents  sex  wisdom,  by  which  there  is  an  ever 
increasing  beauty  and  intelligence  in  man,  until 
sex  becomes  obliterated.) 

Much  etiquette  was  observed  by  the  pilgrims 
toward  one  another  until  they  came  within 
sound  of  the  chanting  priests,  then  all  walked 
silently  with  downcast  eyes  and  palms  pressed 
closely  together. 

The  monastery,  with  its  eight  hundred  idols, 
occupied  about  seven  acres  of  ground,  all  of 
which  was  most  economically  arranged  with 
reference  to  the  food  supply  of  the  occupants. 
Gardens  of  fresh  vegetables,  mushroom  beds, 
and  thousands  upon  thousands  of  lotus  bulbs, 
grew  luxuriously;  while  scattered  about  the 
grounds  in  nooks  and  corners  were  the  idols- 
some  with  fierce,  glaring  eyes  to  remind  the 
worshipper  of  the  struggles  of  life,  others  ex- 
pressing the  calm  repose  of  those  who  have  en- 
tered the  "noble  eight-fold  path".  As  the 


CHAPTER  ONE  7 

throng  became  more  dense  it  separated  into  lit- 
tle groups,  each  of  which  sought  out  its  favor- 
ite idol  and  paid  its  devotions.  Those  who  were 
potters  by  trade  bowed  before  a  green  porce- 
lain God,  while  the  farmers  gathered  before  a 
harvest  queen.  The  literati  also  paid  their  de- 
votions to  a  female  deity,  while  amidst  all  and 
over  all,  the  Blessed  Buddha  sat  upon  his  lotus 
leaf  and  told  in  his  countenance  a  story  of  the 
calm  repose  which  comes  to  those  who  master 
the  fierce  desires  of  earth.  Far  up  the  path 
in  a  nook  almost  hidden  by  foliage  was  a  statue 
of  Hirati,  a  stone  image  with  the  face  of  a 
comely  woman.  Against  her  breast  she  sup- 
ported a  naked  babe  and  in  her  hand  she  held  a 
full  blown  lily.  (This  figure,  so  like  the  Blessed 
Mother  of  our  own  religious  art,  is  pre-Chris- 
tian by  many  centuries.  The  legend  of  Hirati, 
however,  is  one  of  evolution,  carried  further 
than  the  boldest  scientist  of  the  west  would 


8  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

dare  go.  It  tells  us  that  for  sins  committed  in 
a  previous  incarnation,  Hirati  was  born  a 
demon  with  such  wicked  impulses  that  she  de- 
voured her  own  offspring;  but  that  under  the 
beneficent  teaching  of  the  gentle  Buddha,  all 
her  sins  were  transmuted  into  goodness  and 
she  was  given  power  over  the  sex  of  the  unborn. 
Hence  there  is  an  ever  increasing  throng  of 
young  people  before  her,  asking  that  they  may 
be  blessed  with  sons.) 

It  was  before  this  idol  that  the  smoke  of 
costly  incense  was  wafted  up  toward  the  blue 
sky  and  a  Chinaman,  evidently  of  the  better 
class,  breathed  out  to  the  powers  above  him 
the  burden  of  a  prayer.  To  an  observer  the 
story  told  itself.  A  man  of  elegant  bearing  had 
come  to  beseech  the  Goddess  on  behalf  of  a 
child  as  yet  unborn,  to  beseech  her  to  use  her 
good  office  that  the  child  might  be  a  son — a  son 
to  insure  the  succession  of  worship  at  his  ances- 


CHAPTER  ONE  9 

tral  tombs  and  to  carry  forward  his  family 
name.  Unconscious  of  his  surroundings,  he 
bowed  before  the  image  in  earnest  petition. 
If  God,  in  his  mercy,  should  answer,  all  would 
be  well ;  but  if  God,  in  his  mercy,  answered  not, 
still  all  would  be  well ;  for  it  was  the  philosophy 
of  this  astute  man  to  accept  with  unperturbed 
mind  whatever  was  inevitable.  Filled  with  the 
belief  that  his  ancestors  desired  an  unbroken 
family  line,  he  left  nothing  undone  which  he 
thought  might  inure  to  that  end ;  but  it  was  his 
policy,  after  all  the  burning  of  incense  and 
clinching  of  hands,  to  leave  events  with  heaven. 
Being  blessed  with  worldly  goods,  Ching  Fo, 
for  such  was  the  honorable  name  of  the  wor- 
shiper, had  spared  nothing  that  he  thought 
might  appease  the  anger  of  the  Gods,  which  so 
far  had  operated  to  deprive  him  of  sons.  For 
two  long  periods  of  time  before  this,  he  had 
laid  his  choicest  incense  before  Hirati,  yet  when 


10  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

the  child  came  it  was  only  a  girl  and  even  now 
he  was  seriously  pondering  over  some  other 
way  of  providing  a  successor  to  the  family 
line.  He  was  willing,  however,  to  give  the 
Goddess  another  trial;  but  if  she  failed  him 
again,  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  resort  to 
some  of  the  methods,  allowed  by  the  Code  of 
China,  for  the  continuation  of  the  family  wor- 
ship. The  trading  of  a  girl  for  a  boy,  the 
taking  of  a  number  two  wife,  or  the  adoption 
of  another  man's  son,  were  all  legal  remedies 
which  flitted  through  his  mind;  but  he  "kept 
the  face"  and  one  unacquainted  with  the  cir- 
cumstances would  not  have  known  the  anxiety 
that  was  in  his  heart.  So  wrapped  was  he  in 
his  thoughts  that  he  lingered  long  before  the 
idol,  oblivious  of  the  fact  that  others  were  wait- 
ing to  offer  their  devotions.  But  suddenly,  at 
the  sound  of  approaching  footsteps,  he  laid  a 
wafer  upon  the  burner  and  passed,  with  sol- 


CHAPTER  ONE  11 

emn  diginity,  into  a  shaded  path.  He  had  gone 
but  a  few  steps,  however,  when  he  heard  a 
familiar  voice  calling  him : 

"Whither  away,  most  honored  brother?  the 
day  and  the  hour  are  propitious.  Shall  we  not 
sip  some  tea?  I  would  have  converse  with 
thee;  there  are  many  things  that  I  would  say." 

Ching  Fo  turned  and,  seeing  his  friend, 
bowed  very  low  and  said, 

"Some  spirit  hath  brought  us  together,  Sing 
Lee;  I  saw  thee  in  my  sleep  last  night.  Hath 
the  Gods  been  good  to  thee  and  are  thy  hon- 
orable parents  well?" 

"Well;  and  able  to  climb  the  path  and  pay 
their  devotions  to  their  patron  saint,"  replied 
Sing  Lee. 

"Thou  art  in  good  hap  to  have  them  to  this 
ripe  old  age.  Thou  art  a  favorite  of  the  Gods, 
Sing  Lee,  for  thou  hast  both  parents  and  sons. 
Parents  to  lean  upon  thee  in  their  old  age  and 


12  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

sons  to  continue  the  family  worship  when  thou 
art  gone." 

"Yes,  yes,  the  old  man  in  the  sky  has  been 
good  to  me  and  he  will  be  good  to  thee.  The 
astrologers  predict  a  bountiful  harvest  this 
year  and  the  birth  of  many  male  children.  Thy 
day  will  come.  The  sky  is  full  of  promise.  Let 
us  have  tea  and  sweets  and  forget  the  anxie- 
ties of  the  hour.  Here  is  a  good  young  priest 
who  will  serve  us." 

So  saying,  the  two  men  stepped  inside  the 
temple  and  sat  down  before  a  lacquered  table. 
The  young  priest  responded  to  Sing  Lee's  two 
raised  fingers  with  two  cups  of  tea  and  two 
plates  of  preserved  ginger.  In  front  of  Ching 
Fo,  however,  he  also  placed  that  great  symbol 
of  fecundity  and  strength,  a  piece  of  dried 
carp  ceremoniously  wrapped  in  many  folds  of 
red  paper.  This  delicate  reminder  that  the 
young  priest  held  in  remembrance  his  desire 


CHAPTER  ONE  13 

for  a  son  made  Ching  Fo  slip  the  tiny  thing 
into  his  sleeve  with  the  reverent  air  of  a  man 
who  touches  sacred  things.  No  word  was 
spoken,  but  the  electric  spark  of  love  passed 
from  eye  to  eye  and  carried  with  it  such  com- 
fort as  conies  to  those  who  have  mutual  under- 
standing. 

Then  Ching  Fo  turned  to  Sing  Lee  and  they 
entered  into  the  conversation  of  men  who  live 
and  move  in  the  same  social  grade — a  little 
politics,  a  little  religion,  a  little  gossip,  made 
up  their  hour;  but  there  was  another  subject 
that  was  near  the  heart  of  each  which  they 
mentioned  not.  This  was  the  betrothal  of  one 
of  Sing  Lee's  sons  to  one  of  Ching  Fo's  daugh- 
ters. It  had  long  been  a  foregone  conclusion 
that  the  families  should  intermarry;  but  there 
was  diplomacy  to  be  used,  especially  as  thus  far, 
Ching  Fo's  wife  had  produced  only  daughters. 

"What  if  this  plague  of  girls  should  con- 


14  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

tinue  and  what  if  his  name  should  come  to  an 
untimely  end?"  was  Sing  Lee's  thought.  Much 
as  he  loved  his  friend,  he  dared  not  think  what 
it  would  mean  to  his  family  if  there  should 
come  into  it  an  element  which  would  endanger 
its  succession.  The  men  loved  each  other  like 
very  brothers;  but  Sing  Lee  felt  a  reluctance 
about  discussing  so  serious  a  matter  as  the 
betrothal  until  he  saw  a  little  further  into  the 
prospects  of  Ching  Fo.  So  they  sipped  their 
tea  and  ate  their  preserved  ginger  and  when 
they  arose  to  go  each  bade  the  other  a  more 
or  less  restricted  good  bye. 

But  Sing  Lee  had  taken  only  a  few  steps 
when  he  turned  and,  with  much  warmth,  said, 

"May  the  Gods  bring  it  to  pass  as  thou  de- 
sirest,  my  excellent  brother." 

"I  thank  thee,"  replied  Ching  Fo,  "for  this 
expression  of  sympathy  and  I  do  pray  that  the 
day  is  near  at  hand  when  I  shall  be  blessed 


CHAPTER  ONE  15 

with  a  son;  for  nothing  is  so  unfilial  as  to  die 
and  leave  no  posterity.  My  pretty  wife  is  the 
most  unhappy  of  women  because,  so  far,  she 
has  borne  me  only  daughters.  But  now  the 
sign  of  the  zodiac  is  in  Taurus  and  I  hope  be- 
fore another  moon  my  luck  will  change.  Good- 
bye, honored  brother,  and  may  the  Gods  bless 
thee  and  thine/' 

So  saying,  Ching  Fo  turned  into  the  path 
that  led  directly  down  the  hill  to  a  bungalow  of 
more  than  usual  pretentiousness.  An  arch  of 
honor  stood  before  the  gate  while  over  the 
high  stone  wall  rose  a  heavily  tiled  roof,  on 
each  corner  of  which  were  the  lions  of  Buddha. 
A  wooden  gate,  fastened  with  iron  bars,  after 
the  fashion  of  ages  past,  prevented  outsiders 
from  intruding  into  a  sacred  home  life  which 
was  Ching  Fo's  all  in  all.  Gray  with  the  gray- 
ness  of  ancient  things  and  weatherbeaten  by 
the  storms  of  a  thousand  years  was  this  house, 
nestling  so  hidden  in  a  mountain  nook. 


16  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Before  the  gate  the  stone  pavement  was 
worn  into  hollows  by  the  footsteps  of  genera- 
tions long  since  dead,  while  in  the  front  room 
of  the  house  burned  unceasing  incense  on  the 
ancestral  shrine.  Opposite  the  gate,  carved 
in  the  solid  rock  were  sculptured  divinities  pre- 
siding over  a  basin  which  was  used  for  the 
ceremonious  washing  of  hands.  And  here 
had  uncounted  numbers  of  Ching  Fo's  ances- 
tors performed  the  sacred  ceremony.  At  the 
back  of  the  house  was  a  tangle  of  trailing 
columbine  and  hibiscus  bushes  where  nested 
birds  and  bees  and  spiders;  for  no  attempt  at 
landscape  gardening  had  ever  desecrated  the 
grounds. 

Such  was  the  home  of  Ching  Fo  and  such  he 
hoped  to  continue  it  for  uncounted  ages  to 
come.  Everything  about  the  place  indicated 
that  the  owner  was  a  man  upon  whom  the  Gods 
had  bestowed  a  goodly  share  of  the  things  that 


CHAPTER  ONE  17 

perish.  Acres  and  acres  of  waving  rice  fields 
were  his  and  terraces  of  flowers  blossomed  far 
up  the  steep  hill  side. 

What  the  western  man  calls  modern  con- 
veniences, however,  were  nowhere  to  be  seen. 
But  modern  conveniences  were  not  necessary 
to  the  happiness  of  Ching  Fo.  He  was  con- 
tent to  have  things  just  as  his  ancestors  had 
left  them.  If  the  doors  creaked  on  their  wooden 
hinges,  or  if  the  flies  and  mosquitoes  crept 
through  the  space  between  the  eaves  and  the 
wall,  that  was  no  more  than  they  had  done 
in  the  past;  and  if  his  father  and  grandfather 
had  borne  with  these  discomforts,  why  should 
not  he?  Neither  did  he  worry  because  the 
Chinese  rat — more  famous  and  more  trouble- 
some than  any  other  rat — lived  and  squeaked 
between  the  roof  and  the  ceiling.  Even  the 
snakes  that  occasionally  thrust  forked  tongues 
through  holes  in  the  wall  were  looked  upon 


18  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

by  Ching  Fo  as  part  and  parcel  of  the  place. 
Other  things  beside  the  rats  and  the  snakes 
had  a  pre-emption  claim  upon  the  cracks  and 
crevices — creeping  things  of  uncanny  look,  for 
the  house  was  very  old. 

Ching  Fo  said  that  he  had  lived  in  it  a  thou- 
sand years,  by  which  he  meant  that  the  family 
shrine,  so  stiff  and  fly-specked,  had  been  man- 
tained  there  for  a  thousand  years  and  he  reck- 
oned himself,  not  as  an  individual,  but  as  the 
representative  of  a  family  which  must  be  con- 
sidered in  its  entirety,  rather  than  in  separate 
parts.  To  honor  this  long  line  of  ancestors  and 
to  see  to  it  that  a  successor  was  duly  provided 
was  Ching  Fo's  mission  in  life  and  subjects 
remote  from  this  great  one  did  not  enter  very 
fully  into  his  calculations.  He  believed  in 
ghosts,  for  there  were  many  shadowy  resurrec- 
tions at  his  own  hearthstone, — resurrections  of 
fathers  and  mothers  who  were  ever  counseling 


CHAPTER  ONE  19 

him  to  honor  their  memory  and  observe  their 
customs. 

For  ages  before  him  his  forefathers  had 
practiced  the  rigid  virtue  that  makes  possible 
a  clear  vision  of  spiritual  things;  hence  no 
secret  passion  had  scattered  its  uncleanness 
through  his  body  or  filled  his  brain  with  the 
disease  of  sensuality.  Economy  and  industry 
had  brought  to  him  the  comforts  which  go  to 
make  life  pleasant  in  a  Chinese  home  and  it 
was  reckoned  in  the  neighborhood  that  he  was 
a  fortunate  man.  The  one  dark  cloud  that 
hung  across  his  path  and  left  its  shadow  over 
all  his  days  was,  that  despite  the  costly  incense 
burned  to  the  Goddess  Hirati,  and  despite  the 
soft,  sweet  prayers  of  his  wife,  so  far  she  had 
borne  him  only  daughters.  Beautiful  they 
were,  with  their  almond  shaped  eyes  and  their 
obedient  manners,  but  not  in  any  possible  way 
could  they  be  considered  as  representatives  of 
the  family  line. 


20  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

As  he  entered  the  front  door  where  the  lit- 
tle lamp  was  burning  in  honor  of  his  ancestors, 
he  felt  it  beating  in  upon  his  heart  that  he  was 
under  the  displeasure  of  some  evil  spirit.  He 
lighted  an  incense  stick,  carefully  leaving  the 
ashes  of  preceding  ones  piled  high  in  the  bowl, 
removed  the  shoes  from  his  white  stockinged 
feet  and  took  from  the  shelf  a  copy  of  the 
Chinese  Family  Code.  Running  his  eye  over 
the  pages  from  back  to  front,  he  put  his  finger 
on  a  place  where  it  read: 

"Slave  girls,  if  they  bear  sons  to  the  master, 
may  be  the  instruments  with  which  to  bridge 
over  a  weak  spot  in  the  family  line.  Nephews 
may  be  adopted,  or  daughters  betrothed  to  the 
sons  of  friends  and  the  sons-in-law  be  adopted." 

"But  all  these  plans  have  their  objections," 
he  said  to  himself,  "they  are  courts  of  last 
resort,  to  which  we  go  only  when  all  else  fails. 
The  most  feasible  way  seems  to  be  to  take 


CHAPTER   ONE  21 

another  wife.  Peace  may  be  kept  in  the  family, 
or  it  may  not — even  if  not,  'twere  better  than 
to  die  and  leave  no  posterity." 

As  he  soliloquized  over  the  case,  he  thought 
of  Ah  Sin,  the  astrologer,  and  decided  to  pay 
him  a  visit.  Some  definite  information  might 
be  gotten  there,  and  no  stone  should  be  left 
unturned  in  such  a  serious  case.  In  a  silent 
and  preoccupied  manner  he  passed  out  through 
the  gate  and  into  the  open  road,  thence  across  a 
strip  of  stony  ground  and  through  a  gap  in 
the  cliff,  from  which  he  emerged  upon  a  vast 
level  of  rice  fields  where  the  green  waves  fol- 
lowed each  other  all  day  like  the  tides  of  an 
inland  sea.  The  sight  was  so  beautiful  that  it 
intoxicated  him  and  in  a  sort  of  enchantment 
he  heard,  in  imagination,  the  cry  of  a  new- 
born babe.  Startled  and  thrilled  by  the  sound, 
he  hastened  forward  to  the  astrologer. 

"What  mystic  music  is  it  that  plays  upon 


22  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

me  today,"  he  said,  "I  come  to  consult  thee 
concerning  an  heir  to  the  shrine  of  my  fathers, 
and  lo,  I  hear  a  voice  like  the  wail  of  an  infant, 
wafted  across  the  fields.  Tell  me,  O  good 
prophet,  are  the  Gods  angry,  or  are  they  pro- 
pitious? Canst  thou  answer,  wise  man?  Two 
daughters  have  I  but,  alas,  no  son.  The  time, 
however,  is  ripe  for  another  child.  Canst  tell 
me  what  the  signs  are?" 

The  astrologer  turned  over  his  charts  and 
made  calculations  among  the  stars  before  he 
spoke  and  then  very  measuredly  said: 

"Some  of  the  signs  are  right  and  some  are 
wrong.  The  crab  is  not  in  conjunction  with 
the  sun,  but  the  vernal  equinox  is  at  hand  and 
Aries  is  a  masculine  sign." 

This  was  somewhat  less  than  Ching  Fo  had 
hoped,  but  he  hastened  homeward  with  the 
feeling  still  strong  in  his  heart  that  good  news 
awaited  him.  As  he  retraced  his  steps  over  the 


CHAPTER  ONE  23 

mountain  path,  the  mystic  sound  still  thrilled 
him  and  filled  him  with  the  hope  that  he  had 
heard  a  voice — and  that  it  was  the  voice  of  a 
son. 

But  all  his  expectations  were  dashed  to 
pieces  as  a  servant  met  him  at  the  door  and, 
bowing  very  low,  informed  him  that  a  new 
born  female  child  awaited  his  acknowledgment. 
Dark  shadows  flung  themselves  into  his  coal 
black  eyes  and,  for  a  moment,  he  was  staggered 
by  the  blow. 

"Can  it  be,"  he  said  bitterly,  "that  some  an- 
gry God  is  turning  all  my  sons  to  girls?  Oh, 
gentle  Goddess,  to  whom  I  have  so  often  burned 
my  choicest  incense,  where  art  thou?  and  why 
hast  thou  forsaken  me  ?" 

A  wail  from  the  infant  brought  him  to  the 
consciousness  that  he  must  decide  whether  he 
should  accept  this  latest  born  daughter,  or 
whether  he  should  command  the  servants  to 


24  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

expose  her.  Being  a  good  Buddhist,  he  had 
always  observed  the  rule  of  the  brotherhood 
forbidding  the  destruction  of  life,  except  under 
circumstances  most  imperative.  For  this,  and 
for  other  reasons,  he  could  not  find  it  in  his 
heart  to  exercise  his  right,  under  the  law,  and 
sacrifice  the  infant.  So  he  decided  that  out  of 
his  abundance  she  must  be  provided  for,  even 
though  the  duty  were  an  unwelcome  one.  He 
reasoned  logically  that  the  power  given  to  the 
father  by  the  Romans,  by  the  Gauls  and  by  his 
own  countrymen,  over  the  lives  of  his  family, 
came  in  direct  conflict  with  the  law  of  Buddha, 
and  Ching  Fo  felt  bound  by  the  latter. 

"There  is  no  help  for  it,"  he  said  aloud,  "I 
must  accept  this  third  female  child." 

Thus  deciding,  he  put  his  feet  into  a  pair  of 
embroidered  shoes,  tossed  back  the  long  queue, 
which  had  been  coiled  around  his  head,  and 
went  to  the  bedside  of  his  wife.  As  he  beheld 


CHAPTER  ONE  25 

the  infant,  the  cold  legal  aspect  of  the  case 
passed  out  of  his  mind  and  a  look  of  inexpress- 
ible tenderness  crept  over  his  face.  For  a 
moment  he  bent  his  eye  upon  her,  then  taking 
her  almost  reverently,  in  his  arms,  he  raised 
her  three  times  towards  the  ceiling,  thus  ad- 
mitting that  she  was  bone  of  his  bone  and  flesh 
of  his  flesh.  When  he  had  pressed  her  to  his 
bosom  for  one  brief  moment,  he  handed  her 
to  the  nurse  and  retired.  No  word  was  spoken 
by  either  husband  or  wife,  but  a  tear  bedewed 
the  mother's  eyes  as  she  turned  her  face  to  the 
wall. 

The  formal  acknowledgement  of  the  child 
having  taken  place,  it  was  dressed  and  laid  be- 
side its  mother,  who  feebly  raised  her  arms  to 
receive  the  little  stranger,  although  uttering  a 
moan  at  the  thought  of  having  again  given 
birth  to  a  female  child.  Sadly  she  remembered 
the  incense  she  had  burned  and  the  prayers  she 


26  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

had  said  to  her  God ;  sadly  she  sighed  for  a  son 
to  make  her  seem  more  beautiful  in  the  eyes 
of  her  husband. 

Thus  began  the  life  of  one  who  was  destined 
by  the  God  of  Fate  to  be  a  comforter  and  a 
strong  support  in  time  of  need  and  to  endure 
much  for  her  high  ideal  of  duty. 


CHAPTER  II. 

"There  are  five  things  which  are  unfilial, 
but  the  greatest  of  them  is  to  have  no  pos- 
terity. To  die  without  posterity  (viz.  male 
children)  is  an  offense  against  the  whole  line 
of  ancestors  and  terminates  the  family  wor- 
ship." — Confucian  Family  Code. 

The  unconscious  cause  of  all  this  trouble 
stretched  her  toes  and  blinked  her  eyes  and 
grew,  just  like  any  other  well-cared  for  baby. 
On  the  twenty-seventh  day  they  put  salt  in  her 
eyes  to  make  them  tough ;  put  a  charm  around 
her  neck  and  dressed  her  in  a  red  blouse,  em- 
broidered with  butterflies.  They  also  shaved 
her  head,  leaving  only  a  little  tuft  of  hair  on 
the  right  side,  to  show  that  she  was  not  be- 
trothed. They  called  her  Ah  Moy,  which  be- 
ing interpreted,  means  a  female  child.  But 
they  prefixed  the  number  three  that  she  might 


28  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

be  distinguished  from  her  two  sisters  whose 
names  were  also  Ah  Moy.  Sometimes  her 
mother  called  her  the  "blessed  one"  for  she  was 
very  good,  but  to  this,  Ching  Fo  objected  be- 
cause he  thought  it  an  innovation  upon  the 
usages  of  their  ancestors,  who  never  gave 
names  to  their  female  children. 

"It  is  not  proper,"  he  said,  "that  we  should 
break  away  from  the  customs  of  our  fore- 
fathers." 

But  he  loved  the  child  and  carried  her,  many 
a  day,  upon  his  arm.  Together  they  saw  the 
trees  and  the  great  gray  boulders  that  pro- 
jected from  the  mountain  side,  and  together 
they  saw  the  bloom  on  many  a  wayside  flower. 
Although  she  was  only  a  girl,  family  relations 
came  from  far  and  near  and  brought  her  gifts 
of  sweets  and  toys,  and  sometimes  of  durions, 
which  had  such  a  strong  odor  that  it  made  her 
sneeze,  then  her  mother,  fearing  she  was  tak- 
ing cold,  put  a  wadded  blouse  around  her. 


CHAPTER  TWO  29 

One  day  a  priest  came,  pony  back,  adown  the 
hill,  and  brought  her  a  blessing  inclosed  in 
many  a  fold  of  yellow  paper  on  which  was 
writing,  too  sacred  to  be  thrown  away  since  it 
had  enwrapped  the  great  Chinese  monad,  the 
Yin  and  Yang,  sacred  in  all  the  east  as  a  charm 
and  good  luck  symbol.  This,  the  little  mother 
thought  of  much  value,  for  it  was  so  seldom 
that  a  priest  took  the  trouble  to  bless  a  girl 
baby. 

"We  will  hang  it  over  the  bed  to  keep  the 
evil  spirits  away,"  she  said. 

"Yes,  daughter,"  replied  the  priest,  "it  is 
well  to  hang  it  over  the  bed." 

So  Ching  Fo  with  hammer  and  nail  fas- 
tened the  charm  high  up  on  the  wall,  over  the 
cradle  where  slept  the  third  daughter  in  bliss- 
ful unconsciousness. 

Poor  little  Ah  Moy!  It  was  travesty  to 
give  her  the  Yang  and  Yin,  because  far  back 


30  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

in  the  darkness  of  forgotten  time,  the  symbol 
had  stood  for  the  equality  of  the  sexes.  But 
the  priests  had  forgotten  and  during  the  thou- 
sand years  that  Ching  Fo  had  lived  in  the 
bungalow,  no  inquiry  had  been  made  as  to  its 
meaning.  (The  adoption  by  the  Northern  Pa- 
cific railroad  company  of  the  Yin  and  Yang 
as  a  trade  mark  has  made  us  familiar  with  this 
great  symbol  of  the  Far  East.  It  is  found  on 
gravestones  dating  thousands  of  years  before 
Christ  and  is  in  every  climate  from  Yezo,  in 
the  north  of  Japan,  to  the  soft  semi-tropics  of 
India.  It  is  also  found  in  the  basketry  of  our 
North  American  Indians  and  cut  on  the  stone 
discs  of  the  Mound  Builders  in  Tennessee.  It 
has  many  meanings,  as  the  male  and  female 
principles,  light  and  darkness,  or  positive  and 
negative  forces.  When  made  of  black  and 
white,  the  white  represents  the  male  principle 
and  the  black  the  female.) 


CHAPTER  TWO  31 

For  the  first  three  months  Ah  Moy  lay  very 
quietly  in  her  little  bamboo  cradle,  thinking 
wonderful  things  about  her  fingers  which  were 
taper  and  her  toes  which  were  fat.  Occasionally, 
when  her  heavy  clothing  was  removed,  her 
feet  flew  up  to  her  mouth, — but  she  kept  the 
calm  exterior  of  a  Chinese  baby  until  one 
day  a  cockroach  came  tramping  across  her  bed. 
This  made  her  laugh  and  so  pleased  her  mother 
that  she  left  her  weaving  and  whispered  into 
the  little  brown  ear  of  her  child  a  soft  prayer — 
a  prayer  to  the  same  Goddess  Hirati,  beseech- 
ing her  to  intercede  for  Ah  Moy  that  she 
might  some  day  become  the  mother  of  sons, 
for  she  was  now  betrothed  to  Ting  Ho,  the 
sturdy  three-year-old  son  of  Sing  Lee.  Soon 
after  this  she  was  old  enough  to  have  her 
pretty  little  fingers  whipped ;  for  a  Chinese  baby 
must  not  lay  the  slightest  hand  upon  anything 
that  is  not  given  it.  Even  the  long  pipe  that 


32  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

her  father  smoked  so  temptingly  near  as  he 
carried  her  in  his  arms,  was  forbidden  to  be  in- 
vestigated by  the  least  touch.  Neither  must 
she  be  rocked  in  her  cradle  for  fear  she  might 
become  selfish  and  tyrannical. 

A  few  weeks  more  and  she  was  taken  into  the 
open  court  and  laid  on  a  heavy  bed  quilt,  where 
she  could  see  her  sisters  play  and  hear  them 
chant  the  pretty  hymns  that  the  priests  had 
given  them  to  learn.  Out  of  doors,  with  the 
sky  above  her  and  the  glory  of  color  around 
her,  Ah  Moy  saw  an  everchanging  wonder- 
land. From  the  emerald  depths  of  the  bamboo 
that  had  thrown  one  slender  arm  across  the 
wall,  she  heard  the  tinkle  of  many  bells, — the 
soft,  far-away  tinkle  of  the  bell  insect,  so  dear 
to  the  heart  of  painters  and  poets.  (Old  Chi- 
nese poems  refer  to  the  bell  insect  with  great 
affection,  because  it  makes  a  noise  that  reminds 
them  of  home.)  Her  father  was  very  fond  of 


CHAPTER  TWO  33 

the  small  musicians  which  swarmed  in  the  sum- 
mer, and  Ah  Moy's  ear  was  attuned  to  insect 
music  by  ages  of  nature-loving  ancestors.  She 
heard  the  frogs  in  her  father's  rice  field  "rever- 
ently repeat  their  poem"  and  she  was  lulled  to 
sleep  by  the  droning  of  the  bees  and  the  sigh- 
ing of  the  pines. 

Ching  Fo  was  fond  of  his  three  daughters 
and  joined  in  their  play  with  youthful  sim- 
plicity. He  caught  for  them  fire-flies  and  grass- 
hoppers, imprisoning  them  in  the  tiniest  of 
bamboo  cages ;  he  hung  boughs  of  green  upon 
the  wall  to  attract  the  butterflies  and  Ah  Moy 
soon  grew  to  anticipate  with  pleasure  her 
winged  visitors.  It  was  a  great  event  in  the 
lives  of  the  three  girls  when,  one  day,  their 
mother  placed  in  the  court  a  box  containing 
five  soft,  flufify,  little  chickens.  One  wing  of 
each  little  chick  was  dyed  purple,  so  .that  they 
might  be  distinguished  from  Ah  Fat's  chickens, 


34  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

which  had  a  red  spot  on  each  head.  Every  day 
the  chickens  were  turned  out  into  the  street 
for  exercise,  but  always  those  with  the  purple 
wings  found  their  way  back  to  the  court,  while 
Ah  Fat's  chickens,  with  the  red  heads,  as  surely 
went  into  his  gate.  The  little  girls  played  with 
their  new  pets,  divided  their  rice  with  them 
and,  sometimes,  longed  to  follow  them  into  the 
street;  but  the  inexorable  custom  of  China, 
which  gives  girls  no  privileges,  outside  their 
own  gates,  was  rigidly  enforced.  For  them  the 
noisy  world  beyond  was  a  sealed  book  which  it 
were  sacrilege  to  open.  Only  once,  when  the 
gate  had  been  left  ajar  did  Ah  Moy,  number 
one,  venture  into  the  path  and  then  she  received 
such  a  cruel  blow  on  her  legs  that  she  never 
repeated  the  disobedience.  That  night  her 
nurse  told  her  the  frightful  story  about  the 
"cave  of  the  infant  ghosts,"  and  how  a  great 
dragon  watches  for  disobedient  little  girls  and 


CHAPTER  TWO  35 

sometimes  catches  them  and  carries  them  off 
to  his  cave,  where  they  must  build  sand  towers 
which  are  ever  swept  away  by  the  wind  and 
which  the  tired  little  hands  must  hasten  to  re- 
build, lest  the  dragon  come  and  punish  them 
for  idleness.  This  story  so  impressed  Ah  Moy, 
number  one,  that  she  dreamed,  when  she  went 
to  sleep  that  the  dragon  came  and  fastened  his 
claws  deep  in  her  leg  where  the  bamboo  whip 
had  left  its  mark. 

So  passed  the  days  of  childhood  and  so  grew 
the  three  daughters  of  Ching  Fo  in  blissful 
unconsciousness  that  they  were  regarded  by 
their  parents  as  evidence  of  an  angry  God.  For 
them,  as  for  other  children,  there  were  days  of 
joy  and  days  of  sorrow;  but  for  them,  more 
than  for  other  children,  the  birds  sang,  the 
bees  droned  and  Nature  poured  out  her  boun- 
teous store  of  bloom.  The  heart  of  Ching  Fo 
was  warm  and  loving;  the  little  mother  was  a 


36  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

model  of  devotion;  and  weeks  slipped  into  en- 
chanted years. 

But  one  summer  day  a  new  era  came  which 
re-shaped  all  the  doing  of  the  bungalow.  On 
that  eventful  day  there  was  added  to  the  family 
another  babe — a  babe  appointed  by  the  Gods 
to  continue  the  family  worship,  a  long  looked 
for,  a  patiently  waited  for,  a  much  beloved 
son. 

Ching  Fo  felt  now  the  blessed  assurance  that 
for  him  the  little  lamp  on  the  household  shrine 
would  continue  to  burn  as  it  had  done  for  his 
fathers.  He  felt  that  for  him,  as  for  them, 
the  filial  love  of  his  son  would  ensure  a  tablet 
to  his  memory,  and  that  the  smoke  of  incense 
would  curl  in  misty  circles  over  his  unforgotten 
name.  He  saw,  in  softest  fancy,  the  children 
of  his  children's  children  keeping  the  home  life 
forever  free  from  the  encroachment  of  new 
ideas.  With  his  three  daughters  he  continued 


CHAPTER  TWO  37 

to  hold  happy  and  loving  intercourse;  but  as 
they  were  only  females,  born  to  raise  children 
to  some  other  family,  he  regarded  them  in  the 
light  of  luxuries  rather  than  as  successors  to 
his  ancestral  line.  They  were  beautiful  and 
obedient  and  now  that  he  had  a  son,  he  felt  it 
good  to  have  them,  for  they  vied  with  him  in 
celebrating  the  advent  of  their  little  brother; 
and  altogether  the  house  of  Ching  Fo  was  the 
happiest  in  the  land. 

The  news  that  a  son  had  been  born  to  him 
spread  to  all  the  country  round  about,  for  he 
immediately  had  set  before  his  house  the  tallest 
bamboo  pole  that  could  be  found  and  from  its 
top  he  floated  that  great  symbol  of  fecundity 
and  strength,  a  paper  carp.  Large  of  belly, 
red  of  gill  and  gaping  of  mouth,  it  dove  and 
floated  and  told  the  happy  story.  Many  a  time 
had  Ching  Fo  seen  his  neighbors  raise  the  carp 
to  tell  of  the  birth  of  a  son,  and  three  times  had 


38  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

he  prepared  the  pole  for  himself,  only  to  sor- 
rowfully lay  it  away  because  the  God  of  Fate 
had  sent  him  only  a  daughter.  On  such  occa- 
sions, the  wise  ones  predicted  that  he  was  under 
the  displeasure  of  the  Gods  and  that  his  family 
line  would  perish  from  the  earth;  but  now  the 
noble  symbol  was  flaunting  a  proud  defiance  to 
all  their  sneers  and  he  was  full  of  joy. 

The  newcomer  was  strong  and  healthy  and 
like  most  Chinese  babies,  a  non-cryer.  The 
poor  little-foot  mother  was  hardly  able  to  move 
before  relatives  came  from  far  and  near  to  pay 
their  respects  and  to  bring  presents,  which 
proved  a  most  excellent  investment,  from  a 
business  point  of  view,  for  Ching  Fo  acknowl- 
edged the  honor  paid  his  son  by  returning 
many  fold. 

The  two  older  daughters  looked  on  with 
wonder  at  the  importance  attributed  to  the  ad- 
vent of  this  man  child.  They  loved  him  and 


CHAPTER  TWO  39 

felt  for  him  a  great  reverence;  but  Ah  Moy, 
number  three,  cuddled  up  to  her  mother  and 
gave  vent  to  tears.  Ching  Fo,  seeing  how 
deeply  the  child  grieved  for  a  place  on  her 
mother's  knee,  tried  to  console  her  by  present- 
ing her  with  a  little  sleeve  dog. 

"Take  this,  daughter  of  mine,  and  weep  no 
more,  for  in  the  next  incarnation  mayhap  thou 
shalt  be  born  a  male.  The  yoke  that  galls  thee 
is  of  thine  own  making,  pretty  one,  and  when 
thou  hast  atoned  for  sins  committed  in  some 
past  incarnation,  it  will  come  true  that  thou 
shalt  be  no  more  a  despised  female.  Take  the 
dog  and  mayest  thou  achieve." 

Ah  Moy  took  the  dog  and  held  it  in  her  little 
brown  arms  but  the  hurt  was  too  deep  to  be 
so  easily  cured.  She  clung  to  her  nurse  and 
cried  and  behaved  like  a  very  jealous  little  girl. 
But  the  great  children's  festival,  called  the 
"feast  of  dolls",  was  near  at  hand  and  when 


40  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

her  father  took  her  on  his  arm  to  see  the  shops, 
set  out  in  dazzling  array  with  toys  and  lan- 
terns, and  when  sweets  mysteriously  found 
their  way  into  her  sleeve  pocket,  she  dried  her 
tears  and  joined  her  sisters  in  the  festivities. 
For  six  enchanted  days  the  celebration  con- 
tinued with  its  round  of  merry-making.  The 
go-down  was  ransacked  for  dolls  of  mothers 
and  grandmothers  and  the  tiniest  toddlers  in 
the  neighborhood  exchanged  calls  and  brought 
gifts.  The  Ching  Fo  family  donned  their  rich- 
est silks  and  kept  open  house  while  games  and 
other  amusements  were  the  order  of  the  day. 
As  a  new  doll  was  purchased  for  every  daugh- 
ter in  the  family  and  as  all  the  dolls  had  to  be 
dressed  in  silk  and  have  many  a  piece  of  minia- 
ture furniture,  it  was  a  busy  time  and  little 
Ah  Moy  forgot  her  trouble.  When  the  festi- 
val was  over  and  all  the  dolls  were  stored  away 
to  be  seen  no  more  for  a  year,  she  contentedly 
settled  into  her  place. 


CHAPTER  TWO  41 

The  fifth  day  of  the  fifth  moon  brought  an- 
other festival  of  great  importance,  namely, 
"the  Boy's  Festival",  and  Ching  Fo  decided 
that  it  should  be  celebrated  with  all  the  display 
that  so  important  an  occasion  deserved.  Ac- 
cording to  custom,  there  should  be  at  this  sea- 
son, a  pole  before  the  house  flying  a  fish  for 
each  son  in  the  family.  But  Ching  Fo  waived 
the  strict  letter  of  the  law  and  raised  a  whole 
school  of  carp — some  for  nephews,  some  for 
prospective  sons  and  some  for  sons-in-law, 
while  in-doors  were  miniature  warriors  and  all 
the  paraphernalia  of  a  soldier's  train. 

On  the  streets  were  processions  of  old  and 
young  climbing  the  long  hill  to  the  monastery. 
Never  before  in  all  her  three  thousand  years 
had  Hirati  had  so  many  young  mothers  before 
her;  never  before  had  the  temple  been  so 
thronged  with  boys.  Up  the  long  mountain 
path  Ching  Fo  determined  that  his  son  and 


42  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

heir  should  be  taken  and  to  that  end  had  a 
retinue  of  servants  detailed.  In  a  sedan  chair, 
bespangled  with  gold  embroidery  and  closed  in 
with  heavy  silk  curtains,  the  mother  and  infant 
were  placed.  Two  servants  preceded  them  to 
beat  off  the  crowd,  while  strung  out  in  single 
file,  were  the  daughters  and  their  nurses,  an 
old  woman  to  act  as  adviser  in  case  of  accident, 
and  friends  and  relatives  innumerable.  Four 
men  carried  the  sedan  chair,  while  each  rikisha 
was  attended  by  one  pull  man  and  one  push 
man,  making  in  all  a  dozen  or  more  servants 
in  attendance  upon  this  one  blinking  baby. 

If  a  young  mother  was  ever  proud  it  was  the 
little  wife  of  Ching  Fo,  as  she  stood  with  her 
son  before  Hirati  that  day.  Old  friends  con- 
gratulated her ;  the  poor  looked  with  envy  upon 
her  fine  cortege;  and  even  Hirati  seemed  to 
smile  down  upon  her.  In  the  afternoon  a  priest, 
with  shaven  head  and  yellow  robe,  had  himself 


CHAPTER  TWO  43 

let  down  from  the  highest  point  of  jutting  rock 
in  order  that  he  might  indulge  in  grandiose 
prophecy  concerning  the  future  of  the  babe. 
And  later,  he  performed  juggleries  and  sword 
dances  and  swallowed  fire  and  spat  out  ribbons, 
and  by  a  magic  sentence  changed  water  into 
wine.  So  passed  a  delightful  day,  and  as  the 
mists  of  evening  crept  over  the  distant  hills, 
Mrs.  Ching  Fo  and  her  party,  tired  out  with 
pleasure,  turned  homeward. 

During  all  the  time  the  son  had  uttered  no 
protest,  but  had  slept  and  eaten  and,  like  a 
true  philosopher,  closed  his  eyes  when  the 
smoke  of  incense  blew  too  strong  upon  him. 

After  the  festival  was  over  and  the  toys  were 
all  laid  away,  rice  and  chop  sticks  took  the  place 
of  sweets  and  everything  fell  back  into  the  old, 
uneventful  groove.  The  little  girls  chanted 
their  lessons  from  morning  till  night ;  the  frogs 
and  the  insects  kept  up  their  music;  and  the 


44  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

rats  scrambled  through  the  windows  and  down 
the  chimney  in  search  of  food.  Sing  Lee  rode 
over  in  his  rikisha  once  a  week  to  gossip  and, 
taking  it  all  in  all,  life  was  sweet  and  heaven 
propitious. 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  landscape  that  the  poet  loves, 

Is  that  of  early  May, 
When  budding  green  is  half  concealed, 

Beneath  the  willow  spray. 
The  beautiful  embroidery, 

Which  days  of  summer  yield, 
Appeals  to  every  bumpkin, 

Who  takes  his  walk  afield. 

— Ying  Chu  Yang,  800  B.  C. 

So  slipped  the  days  of  childhood,  with  their 
sunshine  and  their  shade,  until  Ah  Moy  was 
five  years  old.  Her  nimble  step  was  always 
pattering  beside  her  father,  for  she  followed 
him  with  the  sweet  constancy  of  an  affection- 
ate nature.  Although  it  was  high  time  that 
her  feet  were  bound,  nothing  had  been  done 
about  it,  except  that  Ching  Fo  had,  several 
times,  conversed  with  his  wife  on  the  subject 


46  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

and  had  had  the  child's  bed  removed  to  an  out- 
house that  her  moans  might  not  disturb  the 
family. 

Ah  Moy  prattled  about  it  in  pretty  baby  talk 
and  thought  that  when  a  two  and  half  inch  shoe 
could  be  gotten  onto  her  foot,  she  would  look 
very  beautiful. 

"Father,  tell  me  the  story  about  lilies  grow- 
ing in  places  where  pretty  little  feet  have  trod," 
said  Ah  Moy  one  bright  morning,  as  she 
slipped  her  hand  into  his. 

"Yes,  daughter.  It  is  said  that  the  last  em- 
press of  the  Shan  dynasty  wore  such  lovely 
little  shoes  that  yellow  lilies  sprang  out  of  the 
ground  wherever  she  trod." 

"Father,  do  fairies  have  little  feet?" 

"Yes,  daughter,  fairies,  so  beloved  by  chil- 
dren, have  little  feet." 

"And  will  my  betrothed  love  me  better,  if  I 
have  my  feet  bound?" 


CHAPTER  THREE  47 

"Yes,"  said  the  father,  "no  refined  Chinaman 
wishes  to  marry  a  woman  with  large  feet." 

These  same  questions  and  many  more,  Ah 
Moy  put  to  her  mother,  who  replied  with  sad- 
ness in  her  voice, 

"Yes,  yes ;  it  is  the  custom  and  women  have 
little  voice  in  the  matter." 

She  had  suffered  too  much  with  her  own 
crippled  feet  to  be  willing  to  inflict  the  torture 
upon  her  daughter;  but  she  kept  the  secret 
hidden  in  a  heart  that  had  never  been  encour- 
aged to  hold  opinions  which  came  in  conflict 
with  those  of  the  male  members  of  the  family. 
So  she  showed  Ah  Moy  pictures  of  little  foot 
women  and  said  that  they  looked  very  beautiful. 

"Besides,"  she  said,  "the  men  wish  it,  and  it 
must  be  done.  Women  must  obey  the  men  of 
the  family  whether  they  desire  to  or  not." 

"Oh  mamma,  your  little  girl  will  not  be  dis- 
obedient. I  will  be  brave  and  keep  my  little 
dog  close  in  my  arms." 


48  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"Yes,"  said  her  mother,  "perhaps  the  little 
dog  will  comfort  you  through  the  trying 
ordeal." 

As  she  said  this  there  came  into  her  face  an 
expression  of  pain,  but  she  brushed  it  away 
with  a  nervous  motion  of  the  hand  and  said, 

"Wait  till  father  says  so.  It  will  be  time 
enough  when  he  speaks." 

That  evening  in  answer  to  an  inquiry  from 
his  wife,  Ching  Fo  replied, 

"Let  her  run  a  little  longer.  It  is  nearly 
time  for  the  plum  blossom  festival  and  I  love 
to  see  her  dancing  down  the  path  as  I  go  to 
watch  the  bloom  breaking  through  the  bark. 
Let  her  run  until  the  festival  is  over." 

To  Ching  Fo  the  blossoming  of  the  plum 
trees  was  a  season  of  great  joy,  for  then  he 
could  bow  his  head  before  those  ennobling  in- 
fluences that  come  with  the  early  spring  and 
realize  their  uplifting  power.  He  felt  the 


CHAPTER  THREE  49 

balm  in  the  air  and  the  soft  clearness  of  the 
lengthened  days  and  a  tenderness  crept  over 
him  which  made  the  prattle  of  his  children  un- 
usually sweet.  So  he  said  again  to  his  wife, 

"Let  her  run.  Child  life  is  short  enough  at 
best.  When  the  festival  is  over,  it  will  be  time 
enough."  His  wife  made  a  pretty,  resigned 
bow,  but  he  noticed  in  her  eye  a  look  not  alto- 
gether in  accord  with  her  usual  submissiveness. 

"She  is  strong  and  brave,"  he  added,  "and 
she  will  bear  it  well." 

"Yes,  yes;  she  is  strong — and  if  it  must  be 
done — it  must  be  done,"  and  casting  a  pathetic 
glance  at  her  own  feet,' she  hobbled  out  of  the 
room. 

Ching  Fo's  eye  followed  her  with  a  look  of 
surprise.  He  had  never  suspected  that  she 
was  dissatisfied  with  her  lot,  or  that  she  had 
opinions  of  her  own. 

"I  must  send  for  her  and  learn  the  meaning 


SO  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

of  the  unwillingness  in  her  face." 

So  he  clapped  his  hands  and  a  servant  en- 
tered. 

"Han  Kow,"  said  he,  "inform  the  madame 
that  I  would  have  converse  with  her." 

"The  madame?"  he  replied,  "I  know  not 
where  to  look  for  her.  I  have  seen  her  but 
once  today  and  then  in  conversation  with  a 
woman  at  the  back  gate." 

"Find  her,"  the  master  commanded  angrily. 

Han  Kow  fled  out  of  the  room  and  through 
the  open  court  to  the  servant's  quarters  where 
he  found  Mrs.  Ching  Fo  entertaining  her  son 
with  a  butterfly.  When  told  that  the  master 
wished  her  to  report  immediately  to  him,  she 
hurried,  like  a  good  wife,  into  his  presence. 

"Let  us  speak  of  the  foot-binding,"  he  said, 
"Is  everything  in  readiness?" 

"There  are  bandages  in  plenty  and  the  bed, 
as  thou  knowest,  is  removed  beyond  hearing," 
she  said  timidly. 


CHAPTER  THREE  51 

"I  like  not  thine  answers  today,"  frowned 
Ching  Fo,  "hast  thou  told  me  all?  Have  you 
not  had  conversation  with  some  one  outside  the 
family?" 

"I  have  seen  no  one,"  she  replied,  "except  a 
worthy  woman  who  asked  for  refreshments  to 
bear  her  up  under  a  long  journey." 

Even  this  did  not  satisfy  Ching  Fo,  but  he 
thought  it  best  not  to  continue  the  subject;  so 
he  turned  the  conversation  to  the  coming 
festival. 

"We  must  prepare  for  many  guests,"  he 
said,  "for  there  will  come  to  stay  with  us, 
two  nephews  from  beyond  the  great  canal  and 
a  son  of  my  uncle,  beside  callers  and  friends 
at  all  hours.  You  must  see  to  it  that  every- 
thing is  in  readiness." 

"Everything  will  be  in  readiness,"  responded 
his  wife  and  again  left  the  room 

Thus  ended  the  first  trivial  misunderstand- 


52  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

ing  between  Ching  Fo  and  his  wife.  Previous 
to  this  she  had  abstained  from  expressing  her 
own  ideas  and  had  been  in  constant  attendance 
upon  her  husband's  slightest  wish.  It  was  but 
a  shadow,  however,  and  soon  blew  over,  for  the 
little  woman  was  too  busy  with  preparations 
for  entertaining  her  husband's  guests  to  think 
on  any  other  subject. 

Crisp  hog  skin  and  mushroom  sauce  filled 
her  mind;  preserved  eggs  that  had  been  laid 
away  in  ashes  of  straw  by  her  own  dainty  fin- 
gers must  be  resurrected;  and  sweets  beyond 
the  brightest  dreams  of  the  little  girls  must  be 
patted  into  shape.  Beside  refreshments,  the 
lintels  of  the  doors  and  blank  spaces  on  the 
wall  must  be  covered  with  red  paper  and  over 
the  bungalow  must  float  a  new  silk  flag. 

Because  the  little  wife  of  Ching  Fo  had  so 
much  to  do  that  she  did  not  know  where  to  be- 
gin, she  concluded  not  to  do  anything  that  day, 


CHAPTER  THREE  S3 

but  to  send  a  rikisha  coolie  over  to  the  home 
of  Sing  Lee  and  invite  the  worthy  matron  of 
that  house  to  come  and  confer  with  her  con- 
cerning some  of  the  details  of  the  work.  It 
was  a  happy  thought  and  turned  a  gloomy 
morning  into  a  sunny  afternoon. 

The  wife  of  Sing  Lee  was  much  pleased  at 
the  honor  paid  her  and  was  glad  to  have  an 
excuse  for  going  out,  so  she  made  hasty  prep- 
arations to  obey  the  summons.  She  belonged 
to  the  best  society  and  would  not,  if  she  could, 
and  could  not,  if  she  would,  move  without  a 
maid,  so  she  brought  with  her  Lo  Ming,  a  nor- 
mal footed  servant.  Being  heavily  built  and 
the  mother  of  many  children,  the  wife  of  Sing 
Lee  waddled  like  a  goose  on  her  three  inch 
shoes ;  but  Lo  Ming  stood  firm  on  wooden  clogs. 
Lo  Ming  also  wore  ornaments  in  her  hair  that 
jingled  and  smooth,  green  bracelets  on  her 
wrists  which  were  placed  there  when  she  was 


54  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

a  child,  so  that  as  she  grew  there  was  no  possi- 
bility of  ever  getting  them  off.  Beside  her 
maid,  the  lady  brought  along  an  infant  and  its 
nurse,  a  man  to  run  ahead  and  a  push  man,  so 
that  the  string  of  servants  in  attendance  on  this 
one  informal  call  was  eight.  The  nurse  and 
the  maid  and  the  baby  went  into  the  house  with 
the  Madame,  but  the  coolies  curled  up  on  the 
sidewalk  and  went  to  sleep. 

Leaning  heavily  upon  the  shoulder  of  Lo 
Ming,  the  visitor  entered  the  presence  of  her 
hostess  with  many  a  smile  and  bow  and  much 
rustling  of  silken  trousers.  As  soon  as  the  cere- 
mony of  entrance  was  over,  the  good  lady 
brought  a  few  choice  recipe  out  of  her  sleeve 
and  proceeded  to  explain  their  special  merits. 
She  also  presented  the  wife  of  Ching  Fo  with 
a  bottle  of  Chautney  which  she  said  was  of  her 
own  make  and  of  excellent  quality.  Then  fol- 
lowed a  short  conversation  about  the  coming 


CHAPTER  THREE  55 

festival  in  which  Madame  Sing  Lee  offered  to 
loan  her  ivory  chop  sticks  and  supply  any  lack 
of  dainties  from  her  own  store.  But  the  temp- 
tation to  gossip  was  too  strong  to  be  resisted 
by  these  women  who  so  seldom  escaped  from 
the  routine  of  home  duties.  It  began  with  the 
missionaries  and  also  ended  with  the  mission- 
aries,— their  tight  dresses,  their  large  feet,  their 
food,  their  habits,  their  lack  of  respect  for  the 
aged,  etc.,  etc. 

"I  had  myself  carried  past  their  school  in  a 
sedan  chair,"  said  Madame  Sing  Lee,  and  I 
saw  with  my  own  eyes  how  they  go  tramping 
about  like  men  and  how  their  dresses  are  drawn 
in  at  the  waist,  so  as  to  show  the  figure, — it 
would  make  a  Chinese  woman  blush.  I  wonder 
how  they  can  expect  to  live  in  a  country  like 
ours,  where  women  are  taught  to  be  modest 
and  keep  out  of  sight !" 

"Yes,"  replied  Mrs.   Ching  Fo,  "and  they 


56  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

build  their  houses  without  least  regard  to  the 
Wind  God.  Some  of  the  roofs  point  straight 
to  the  north  and  others  angle  on  a  line  with 
the  temples.  There  is  no  doubt  but  this  has 
much  bad  influence  on  the  weather." 

Thus  passed  the  afternoon;  many  little 
nothings  were  discussed,  much  tea  was  sipped 
and  the  water  clock  pointed  to  five  before  Mrs. 
Sing  Lee,  with  her  train  of  attendants,  took  the 
road  for  home. 

The  next  day,  however,  things  began  to 
move  in  the  house  of  Ching  Fo.  The  servants 
were  called  together  and  the  work  laid  out  in 
true  business-like  style,  the  Dragon  flag  was 
finished,  packages  of  fire-crackers  and  incense 
sticks  were  brought  out  of  their  boxes  and  a 
glare  of  red  paper  transformed  the  doors  and 
lintels.  A  week  of  this  strenuous  work  and  the 
house  of  Ching  Fo  broke  into  loud  jubilee. 
Double  headers  were  exploded  and  tom-toms 


CHAPTER  THREE  57 

beaten;  stringed  instruments  and  wind  instru- 
ments throbbed  weird  music  on  the  evening  air ; 
processions  of  children  chanted  Buddhistic 
hymns  and  long  rows  of  lanterns  cast  a  magic 
glow  over  the  scene.  Ching  Fo  placed  the  spirit- 
recalling  incense  in  a  burner  and,  with  eyes 
slightly  inclined  toward  his  nose,  meditated 
upon  the  sacred  faces  of  his  dead.  As  the  per- 
fume filled  the  room,  he  folded  his  hands  and 
fixed  his  eyes  upon  the  vase  until  he  saw  a 
spirit  hover  in  the  smoke,  take  shape,  grow 
brighter,  become  illumined,  and  then  softly 
fade  away.  How  long  he  meditated  and  how 
intense  the  strain,  was  only  revealed  by  the 
drops  of  perspiration  that  beaded  his  shaven 
forehead.  After  a  season  of  silence,  he  arose, 
went  to  the  table  and  religiously  set  apart  space 
for  his  invisible  guests.  Then  there  gathered 
around  the  board  such  male  members  of  his 
family  as  had  paid  their  debts,  dissipated  their 


58  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"wrath  matter'  and  were  able  to  wish  each 
other  good  luck  for  a  thousand  years.  Abstem- 
iousness and  ceremonious  politeness  character- 
ized this  feast  of  the  dead;  but  after  it  was 
over  for  ten  enchanted  days  poetry  and 
"squeeze  pidgin"  (a  sort  of  commission,  gen- 
erally in  the  form  of  a  present,  which  is  exacted 
by  Chinamen  who  assist  in  arranging  the  de- 
tails of  a  trade,)  gambling  and  drinking 
followed. 

The  whole  of  China  was  newly  shaven  and 
newly  clad ;  spotless  white  stockings  peeped  be- 
neath trousers  of  heavenly  blue;  queues  were 
lengthened  and  swung  artistically  about  the 
heels,  while  in  every  house,  even  those  of  the 
poorest  of  the  poor,  a  little  incense  smouldered 
in  a  vase  or  curled  over  the  graves  of  pet  cats 
and  birds. 

To  each  of  his  friends  Ching  Fo  sent  a  little 
present,  wrapped  in  many  folds  of  ceremonious 


CHAPTER  THREE  59 

paper ;  while  to  his  children  he  brought  gifts  of 
fruit  and  toys  and  lavished  upon  them  an  ex- 
uberance of  love.  "Perfume  of  the  lotus",  "dew 
of  the  morning"  and  "heaven-born",  were  not 
too  loving  names  for  him  to  bestow  upon  his 
daughters  during  the  plum  blossom  season. 

The  trees  about  which  centered  a  large  part 
of  the  festivities  were  gnarled  and  old;  green 
moss  hung  heavy  on  the  north  side,  and  many 
a  bird  nested  in  the  boughs.  But  they  were 
transformed  before  the  festival  was  over  by 
fluttering  scraps  of  paper  on  which  were  writ- 
ten poems.  In  this  happy  contest  of  verse 
making,  all  were  welcome — from  the  poorest 
coolie  to  the  finest  scholar.  Whether  visionary 
young  women  dashed  off  a  line  and  twisted  it, 
with  deft  fingers,  around  a  twig,  or  whether 
sedate  old  men  pondered  long  over  a  sonnet, 
was  a  matter  of  little  moment  to  Ching  Fo;  for 
he  felt  that  the  great  watchful  heavens  pro- 


60  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

claimed  the  equality  of  man.  Confucius  had 
taught  long  centuries  before,  that  all  the  black 
haired  men  were  brethren  and  Ching  Fo,  as  his 
heart  expanded  with  the  budding  spring,  felt 
the  oneness  of  his  kind.  Beside  his  realization 
of  fellowship,  there  had  been  poured  into  his 
soul  myth  after  myth  concerning  the  festival, 
each  of  which  had  sunk  in  and  been  absorbed 
until  every  detail  of  the  occasion  symbolized 
something  either  beautiful,  terrible,  or  mys- 
terious. To  gather  his  family  under  a  tree  and 
with  a  long  pole  to  strike  its  limbs  and  bring 
down  upon  them  a  shower  of  scented  petals, 
was,  to  his  mind,  a  baptism  which  carried  with 
it  the  sacredness  of  a  religious  rite.  To  buy 
birds  in  cages  for  his  children  to  liberate  was 
to  him  an  invocation  to  the  Goddess  of  Mercy. 
In  these  and  many  other  like  fancies  he  believed 
and  taught  his  children  to  believe. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

"The  willow  sprays  are  yellow  fringed, 
The  grass  is  gaily  green, 
Peach  bloom  in  wild  confusion, 
With  the  perfumed  plum  is  seen, 
The  eastward  breeze  sweeps  onward, 
Yet  our  sorrows  never  go; 
And  the  lengthening  days  of  spring  time, 
Bring  lengthening  days  of  wroe." 

—  Chi-Chihi,  B.  C. 


The  festival  was  over  and  life  in  the  bunga- 
low of  Ching  Fo  was  settling  back  into  its  usual 
monotony  when,  one  evening,  a  new  idea  was 
intruded  upon  the  master  of  the  house  —  and 
new  ideas  were  always  unwelcome  guests  to 
Ching  Fo.  With  his  third  daughter  tripping 
lightly  before  him,  he  had  strolled  down  the 
path  to  see  if,  perchance,  the  plum  trees  were 
putting  out  any  new  bloom,  when  a  bit  of  paper, 


62  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

upon  which  was  written  a  short  poem,  came 
fluttering  over  the  wall. 

"Some  belated  guest,"  thought  Ching  Fo,  as 
he  unfolded  a  neatly  written  page  and  began  to 
read,  but,  to  his  astonishment,  he  found  that 
although  written  in  the  refined  language  of  the 
Wenli  (a  language  spoken  only  by  the  educated 
class),  it  contained  a  criticism  on  the  custom  of 
foot  binding.  By  what  authority  it  had  been 
written  and  by  whose  audacious  hand  intruded 
upon  his  premises  were  questions  that  knit  his 
brow  and  darkened  his  eye.  Naturally  his  first 
thought  was  of  the  missionaries  who  had  so 
persistently  maintained  their  school  below  him, 
on  the  Yang-ste-kiang  river.  But  as  he  looked 
the  document  over,  he  saw  that  it  bore  none  of 
the  marks  of  their  hand. 

'They  never  write  in  verse,"  he  said  to  him- 
self, "and  they  would  not,  they  could  not,  use 
the  beautiful  ideographs  of  the  Wenli." 


CHAPTER  FOUR  63 

Ah  Moy  saw  the  cloud  that  spread  over  her 
father's  face  and  slipped  her  little  brown  hand 
into  his,  but  he  noticed  her  not.  The  sentiment 
expressed  in  that  trifling  verse  had  stung  him 
as  an  insult.  It  was  his  first  thought  to  burn 
the  sheet  and  thus  end  the  matter;  but  after  a 
few  moments  of  hesitation,  he  folded  it  deep 
into  his  sleeve,  all  the  while  dubiously  shaking 
his  head. 

"If  the  wife  should  get  a  glimpse  of  it,"  he 
said  half  aloud,  "it  would  add  fuel  to  the  fire 
already  kindled,"  then  turning  to  his  little 
daughter  he  took  her  hand  and  together  they 
walked  back  toward  the  house. 

Everything  was  as  they  had  left  it ;  the  lamp 
flickered  on  the  household  shrine;  the  setting 
sun  worked  its  miracles  of  purple  and  gold  on 
the  mountain  peaks  and  blue  sheets  of  mists 
were  gloaming  the  valley;  but  he  saw  none  of 
these  things,  remembering  only  the  poem  which 


64  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

had  been  aimed  by  sacrilegious  hands  at  his 
family  life.  The  more  he  thought  of  it,  the 
more  he  felt  that  it  was  a  matter  of  too  much 
moment  to  be  passed  lightly  by.  It  came 
beating  into  his  heart  that  he  must  consult 
someone  and  that  this  someone  must  not  be  his 
wife.  In  this  state  of  mind  he  put  on  a  heavily 
wadded  blouse  and  went  into  the  street.  At 
once  a  swarm  of  coolies  gathered  about  him  to 
solicit  his  patronage  but  without  heeding  them 
he  turned  into  a  narrow  path  that  led  up  to  the 
temple. 

He  had  only  gone  a  few  steps,  however,  when 
he  turned  back  and  addressed  the  nearest  coolie, 
saying, 

"Take  me  down  to  the  house  of  Sing  Lee." 

Ching  Fo  loved  Sing  Lee  like  a  very  brother 

and  while  his  first  thought  had  been  to  go  to  the 

priest,  he  reconsidered  it  and  decided  to  confer 

with   his    old    friend.      There    was    little    re- 


CHAPTER  POUR  65 

semblance  in  thought  between  these  men  but 
there  was  enduring  confidence  and  respect. 
Sing  Lee's  care-free  life  contrasted  sharply 
with  the  sedate  nature  of  Ching  Fo,  but  their 
differences  fled  away  when  either  needed  as- 
sistance. Many  a  time  had  the  retort  courteous 
been  exchanged  but  always  with  kindness  and 
good  humor.  To  Ching  Fo's  ideas  of  propriety, 
Sing  Lee  would  sometimes  say, 

"What  is  propriety?  and  what  is  shame? 
Only  the  talk  of  fools.  I  tell  thee,  my  friend, 
that  wisdom  consists  in  keeping  the  mind  free 
from  such  thoughts." 

And  when  Ching  Fo  reproved  him  for  his 
lavish  expenditure  of  money,  Sing  Lee  would 
say,  "there  is  no  disease  worse  than  avarice." 

So  in  going  to  him  with  his  trouble,  Ching 
Fo  felt  that  he  must  approach  his  friend  cau- 
tiously lest,  owing  to  the  differences  between 
them,  he  might  find  that  Sing  Lee  himself  had 
some  knowledge  of  the  objectionable  poem. 


66  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

As  he  stepped  out  of  the  rikisha  Ching  Fo 
felt  in  his  sleeve  to  make  sure  that  the  offensive 
paper  was  still  there  and  then  struck  the  old 
bronze  bell  at  the  gate  a  vigorous  blow.  A  ser- 
vant unbarred  the  door  and  Ching  Fo  passed 
up  a  pair  of  wooden  stairs  to  the  roof,  where 
he  found  Sing  Lee  facing  the  south  and  softly 
thrumming  a  small  stringed  instrument.  The 
music  was  suited  to  the  hour  and  Ching  Fo 
paused  to  listen.  After  a  short  prelude,  a  voice 
rose  clear  and  sweet  in  an  old  familiar  song. 

"The  sun  is  setting  and  I  loose  my  boat. 
And  lightly  o'er  the  misty  waters  float." 

The  verse  was  not  finished,  however,  for 
Sing  Lee  felt  the  approach  of  his  friend  and, 
laying  the  instrument  down,  arose  and  bowed 
very  low,  saying: 

"The  unexpected  happens  when  Ching  Fo 
leaves  his  own  delightful  home  to  accept  the 
hospitality  of  Sing  Lee.  All  is  well  at  the 
bungalow,  I  hope?" 


CHAPTER  FOUR  67 

"Yes,"  replied  Ching  Fo,  "all  is  well." 

"Art  thou  fully  rested  after  the  joys  of  the 
plum  blossom  festival?"  inquired  Sing  Lee. 

"Fully,"  returned  Ching  Fo,  "and  ready  to 
resume  the  duties  of  the  hour.  Are  the  Gods 
good  to  thee?" 

"Yes,  the  Gods  are  good,"  replied  Sing  Lee. 

"Music  hath  charms,"  remarked  Ching  Fo, 
"let  us  hear  a  song." 

At  which  Sing  Lee,  with  a  merry  twinkle  in 
his  eye,  sang, 
"You  ask  me  why  I  greet  the  priest,  but  not 

his  God? 

The  God  sits  mute,  the  man,  at  least,  returns 
my  nod." 

"A  characteristic  prank,"  said  Ching  Fo, 
"wilt  thou  never  leave  off  nonsense?  I  came  to 
consult  you  upon  a  serious  matter." 

"Very  well  then,  we  shall  be  serious.  Is  there 
anything  of  mutual  interest?" 


68  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"Yes,"  said  Ching  Fo,  "something  of  interest 
to  all  good  men.  Hast  thou  not  heard  how  the 
foreign  devils  are  pushing  into  the  country  and 
how  they  intrude  their  ideas  upon  us  ?" 

"Yes,  there  is  an  ever  increasing  crop  of 
them,  I  admit,  but  we  must  make  the  best  of 
it,"  said  Sing  Lee. 

"The  foreigners  claim  that  they  wish  to 
facilitate  the  handling  of  goods  upon  the  river," 
said  Ching  Fo,  without  noticing  the  discourag- 
ing attitude  of  his  friend,  "and  I  hear  they  are 
already  wrangling  about  the  likin  charges." 
At  this,  he  scrutinized  the  face  of  Sing  Lee  to 
see  whether  it  betrayed  any  knowledge  of  the 
matter  he  had  in  his  mind.  But  Sing  Lee  had 
heard  nothing  of  the  likin  troubles  and  Ching 
Fo  ventured  a  little  nearer. 

"Another  poem  has  been  added  to  those 
already  gathered  at  the  festival,"  said  he  in  a 
careless  manner  at  the  same  time  watching  the 
effect  of  his  sally. 


CHAPTER  FOUR  69 

"Allow  me  the  pleasure  of  reading  it,"  re- 
quested Sing  Lee,  "perchance  the  last  is  the 
best, — it  sometimes  happens  so." 

Thus  re-assured  Ching  Fo  pulled  the  ob- 
noxious poem  from  his  sleeve  and  handed  it  to 
his  friend  who  read  it  with  mingled  amusement 
and  surprise. 

"What  mountebank  has  written  this  ?"  he  ex- 
claimed as  he  finished  it.  "It  reads  like  a  lay 
from  the  'Beggar's  Pagoda'.  Surely  the  writer 
cannot  boast  of  his  wit  even  though  he.  has 
written  in  the  Wenli." 

"No,"  replied  Ching  Fo,  "but  after  all  there 
is  danger  in  it.  Such  things  do  harm  if  not 
looked  after.  It  is  against  the  law  of  China  to 
put  on  paper  that  which  will  cause  disrepect 
of  ancestral  customs." 

"Yes,  yes,"  responded  Sing  Lee,  "but  no 
doubt  there  is  an  effort  being  made  to  create 
prejudice  against  foot  binding." 


70  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"What  right  have  they  to  intrude  upon  our 
home  life,  or  to  thrust  their  opinions  upon  those 
who  do  not  desire  them." 

"Oh,  the  foreigners  are  not  so  much  con- 
cerned about  the  etiquette  of  the  case  as  we 
are.  But,  to  tell  the  truth,  I  have  had  some 
serious  misgivings  upon  the  subject  of  foot 
binding,  myself." 

"You  do  not  mean  to  say  that  you  would  dis- 
continue it,"  exclaimed  Ching  Fo,  in  some 
astonishment. 

"No,"  replied  Sing  Lee,  "I  am  not  ready  to 
say  that,  but  do  you  not-  think  that  the  torture 
is  unnecessary?" 

Ching  Fo  was  silent  for  some  moments  and 
then  replied: 

"No;  what  we  prize  in  our  women  is  the 
sacred  thought  which  they  hold  toward  mother- 
hood. If  given  liberty  to  run  about,  their 
minds  might  be  diverted  and  then,  slowly  but 


CHAPTER    FOUR  71 

surely,  the  generations  to  come  would  degen- 
erate. Even  admitting  that  in  some  cases 
women  do  suffer  with  their  feet,  that  is  less 
corrupting  than  to  have  the  mind  filled  with 
thoughts  alien  to  their  high  mission.  In  China 
there  are  but  few  immoral  of  either  sex,  and  for 
that  fact  we  are  indebted  to  the  purity  and 
homestaying  habits  of  the  women.  We  hear 
much  of  the  worship  of  women  in  the  western 
countries ;  but  theirs  is  only  the  worship  of  the 
young  and  the  beautiful.  We  worship  women 
whose  faces  have  been  transfigured  by  mother- 
hood. It  is  only  so  that  the  divinity  of  women 
can  continue." 

"Oh,"  answered  Sing  Lee,  "I  am  not  ready 
to  advise  against  foot-binding;  but  still  I  say 
that  it  is  very  painful  and  may  some  day  come 
to  be  considered  unnecessary." 

"In  that  case,"  returned  Ching  Fo,  "we  shall 
be  in  the  way  to  lose  sight  of  one  of  the  greatest 
of  our  moral  safeguards." 


72  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"I  am  aware,"  agreed  Sing  Lee,  "that  our 
family  code  lays  great  stress  upon  prenatal 
damage  and  that,  if  women  were  allowed  to 
run  about  freely,  their  thoughts  might  become 
corrupted  and  harm  be  done  to  the  unborn. 
Yet  if  woman  be  compelled  to  suffer  pain  all 
her  life  on  account  of  her  feet,  may  not  that 
also  cause  prenatal  damage?" 

"Probably,  but  not  in  the  same  way  that  the 
child  is  injured  whose  mother  is  a  victim  of 
sensual  pleasure.  Either  love  of  dress  or  self 
indulgence  may  divert  her  motherly  instincts 
and  scatter  sensuality  through  her  body." 

For  a  little  time  the  two  friends  discussed  the 
matter  but  arrived  at  no  reasonable  solution  of 
its  difficulties,  so  Ching  Fo  returned  the  poem 
to  his  sleeve  and  went  out  into  the  moonlit  path. 
As  he  walked  toward  home,  he  felt  a  rankling 
in  his  heart  toward  all  foreigners.  For,  even 
though  he  could  not  understand  how,  he  felt 


CHAPTER    FOUR  73 

sure  that  they  had  aimed  a  blow  at  the  ancient 
institutions  of  his  ancestors. 

"The  whole  western  civilization  is  built  upon 
a  foundation  of  material  gain,"  he  meditated, 
and  to  honor  the  father  and  the  mother  and  to 
live  a  life  of  abstemiousness  is  no  part  of  their 
philosophy.  They  cannot  appreciate  our  love 
for  the  ancient  customs  and  they  have  no  right 
to  intrude  upon  our  soil." 

But  this  reasoning  did  not  help  him  to  solve 
the  mystery  of  the  poem.  All  he  could  see  was 
that  he  believed  it  to  have  been  written  at  the 
instigation  of  some  foreigner  and  he  hated 
them  all. 

Upon  entering  his  own  yard  he  closed  the 
gate  with  a  bang  and  after  placing  the  heavy 
iron  bars  across  it,  he  called  his  wife.  That 
model  of  obedience  made  haste  to  answer  and 
Ching  Fo  said,  with  some  determination  in  his 
tone: 


74  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"It  is  time  that  the  bandages  be  placed  upon 
the  feet  of  the  third  daughter.  I  therefore 
command  thee  to  have  everything  done  that  is 
customary  upon  such  an  occasion." 

To  his  surprise,  for  the  first  time  in  her  life, 
the  wife  showed  signs  of  unwillingness.  At 
this  he  demanded  of  her  a  full  confession  of 
all  that  she  thought  and  an  explanation  of  how 
she  had  arrived  at  an  opinion  so  in  conflict  with 
the  traditions  of  their  forefathers. 

Then  the  wife  timidly'  confessed  that  the  wo- 
men in  the  neighborhood  had  been  talking  and 
that  they  had  heard  of  a  new  society  in  Shang- 
hai, organized  for  the  purpose  of  creating  sen- 
timent against  the  custom.  She  told  him  that 
the  ladies  who  were  interested  were  the  wives  of 
men  in  high  position  and  that  some  of  them 
went  to  the  Buddhist  temple  to  pray  and  she 
expressly  assured  him  that  they  were  not  mis- 
sionaries, nor  teachers  of  a  foreign  religion.  At 


CHAPTER    FOUR  75 

this  juncture  she  took  from  her  sleeve  a  copy 

of  the  North  China  Daily  News  and  pointed 

her  liege  lord  to  an  advertisement,  of  which  the 

following  is  a  true  copy: 

"TIEN  TSU  HUI."  (Natural  feet  society.) 

"President,  Mrs.  Drummond. 

"PROVISIONAL  COMMITTEE:  (with 
power  to  add  to  its  members.) 

"Mrs.  N.  P.  Anderson,  Frau  General-Consul 
Rock,  Mrs.  James  Buchanan,  Mrs.  T.  L.  Bul- 
lock, Mrs.  W.  Dowdall,  Mrs.  Drummond,  Mrs. 
Edkins,  Miss  Caskin,  Mrs.  Hipplesy,  Mrs.  H. 
C.  Hodges,  Mrs.  George  Jamieson,  Mrs.  T.  R. 
Jernigan,  Mrs.  Little,  Mrs.  F.  Julian  Marshall, 
Frau  Joh  Nolting,  Frau  General-Consul  V. 
Hass-Pertazzi,  Dr.  Elizabeth  Reifsnieder,  Mrs. 
Seaman,  Frau  Herman  Sonne,  Mrs.  C.  Thorne, 
Sra  Dona  Luisa  De  Uriarte,  Signora  Iside 
Volpicelli,  Mrs.  H.  Parkes  Wilkinson. 

-Those  names  with  asterisks  are  on  the  Ex- 
ecutive Committee. 


76  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

HON.  TREASURER, 
Mrs.  Marshall,  No.  I    Yuen-ming-yuen  Road. 

HON.  SECRETARIES: 

Mrs.  Seaman,  No.  70  Bubbling  Well  Road. 

Mrs.  James  Buchanan,  No.  2  Yuen-ming-yuen 

Road." 
ORGANIZING  SECRETARY: 

Mrs.  Little,  Ichang. 

"This  society  has  been  formed  to  distribute 
pamphlets,  leaflets  and  pictures  among  the 
Chinese  on  the  subject  of  the  prevailing  prac- 
tice of  foot-binding,  to  encourage  the  formation 
of  leagues,  and  in  other  ways  to  influence  native 
opinion.  It  also  proposes  to  offer,  from  time 
to  time,  prizes  for  the  best  Chinese  essays  on 
the  subject. 

"The  ladies  of  the  Committee  solicit  dona- 
tions of  $i  and  upwards,  and  also  ask  all  those 
interested  in  freeing  Chinese  women  from  the 
bondage  of  this  cruel  custom,  to  seek  out  fresh 


CHAPTER  FOUR  77 

means  of  distributing  literature,  whether 
through  the  kind  assistance  of  missionaries  or 
of  merchants,  either  foreign  or  Chinese,  or 
better  still,  of  personal  friends. 

"All  ladies  willing  to  help  forward  the  ob- 
jects of  the  society,  in  one  or  the  other  of  these 
ways,  are  requested  to  send  their  names  to  one 
of  the  Shanghai  secretaries,  to  be  enrolled  as 
associates.  It  is  hoped  that  in  all  the  outports, 
local  Committees  may  shortly  be  formed,  and 
that  in  this  way  all  foreign  women  residing  in 
China  may  be  found  united  in  doing  what  they 
can  to  save  little  girls  from  the  torture  of  a 
custom  that  has  nothing  to  recommend  it 
save  that  it  is  the  custom.  The  co-operation 
of  Chinese  ladies  will  be  still  more  gladly 
welcomed. 

"The  object  being  to  uproot  a  fashion  rather 
than  to  combat  a  principle,  it  is  especially  hoped 
that  ladies  will,  as  far  as  possible,  act  on  their 


78  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

own  initiative,  each  doing  what  she  can  in  her 
own  immediate  circle,  without  waiting  for  in- 
structions from  the  Committee,  but  acting  as 
she  thinks  best  to  advance  the  aim  of  the 
Society,  remembering  that  a  fashion  like  foot- 
binding,  which  is  not  based  upon  reason,  is 
quite  as  likely  to  be  overturned  by  an  appeal 
to  good  taste  or  good  feeling  as  by  the  most 
learned  of  arguments." 

When  he  had  finished  reading,  she  said  in  a 
pathetic  voice : 

"I  have  hobbled  all  my  life  on  crippled  feet 
and  I  would  that  I  might  save  my  youngest 
daughter  from  the  torture.  I  understand  that 
from  your  decision  there  is  no  appeal  and  that 
it  were  madness  to  disobey ;  but  I  most  sincerely 
request  that  you  consider  the  matter  a  little 
further.  It  may  be  that  we  have  come  to  a  new 
era  when  the  torture  of  our  female  children 
can  be  omitted." 


CHAPTER    FOUR  79 

Ching  Fo  listened  to  her  longer  than  she  had 
expected  and  even  weighed  the  matter  care- 
fully, but  finally  turned  to  her  and  said : 

"I  have  seen  the  foreign  women  in  Shanghai 
tramping  about  like  men,  and  I  know  that  their 
ideas  of  propriety  are  very  far  from  the 
Chinese  standard.  Their  feet  are  large  and 
their  dresses  are  drawn  in  at  the  waist  in  a 
way  that  would  make  a  Chinese  woman  blush. 
Some  of  the  best  of  them  have  been  obliged  to 
modify  their  apparel  before  introduction  into 
our  society.  Women  who  deform  their  waists 
and  expose  their  necks  are  not  in  a  position  to 
offer  advice  to  us." 

"No.  But  it  does  not  necessarily  follow  that 
our  little  daughter  would  become  immodest  if 
she  had  natural  feet,"  said  the  mother. 

"When  women  can  run  about  they  are  in 
danger  of  falling  into  bad  habits;  then  comes 
neglect  of  duties  and  disobedience  to  husbands, 


80  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

and  then  the  foundation  of  the  home  is  in 
danger.  Women  are  not  strong-minded  enough 
to  take  care  of  themselves  and  it  is  necessary 
that  men  should  regulate  their  lives  for  them. 
Women  are  honored  for  their  virtues  and  not 
for  their  accomplishments,  or  because  they  can 
tramp  about  like  men,"  replied  Ching  Fo. 
Then  taking  a  copy  of  the  Confucian  Code  from 
the  shelf  he  read,  "A  woman  requires  no  extra- 
ordinary talent;  her  countenance  requires  no 
exquisite  beauty;  her  words  require  no  fluent 
lips;  her  labor  requires  no  high  degree  of  dex- 
terity. Let  her  be  chaste,  innocent,  sober  and 
economical.  Let  her  preserve  her  modesty  and 
choose  her  words.  This  constitutes  female 
virtue." 

"The  binding  of  the  feet,"  continued  he,  "is 
calculated  to  enhance  all  these  charms.  Suffer- 
ing is  the  price  of  a  subjugated  will  and  women 
must  be  kept  in  subjugation.  You  must  remem- 


CHAPTER    FOUR  81 

her  that  the  third  daughter  has  in  her  keeping 
the  welfare  of  a  new  generation  and  all  that 
makes  for  its  good  must  be  fostered.  What 
would  Ting  Ho  say,  when  he  comes  to  man- 
hood, to  find  that  his  betrothed  had  large  feet? 
It  would  not  do.  So,  now  I  command  thee  to 
have  the  bandages  placed  on  the  feet  of  Ah 
Moy,  number  three,  tomorrow  morning." 

"It  shall  be  done,"  said  the  mother  and  she 
sorrowfully  hobbled  out  of  the  room. 

Soon  after  she  was  gone,  Ah  Fat  called  and 
the  subject  was  again  under  discussion. 

"Yes,"  said  he,  "I  have  seen  the  poem  sent 
out  by  the  anti-foot-binding  society  and  I 
rather  like  it.  I  believe  they  are  working  in  a 
way  to  do  good.  I  have  no  daughters,  but  if  I 
had,  I  think  I  should  have  them  unbind.  The 
custom  causes  great  suffering  and  I  see  no 
reason  why  women  may  not  be  good  wives 
with  natural  feet.  I  have  heard  it  said  that 


82  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

some  of  the  mission  schools  where  the  experi- 
ment has  been  tried  have  found  it  difficult  to 
get  husbands  for  their  girls,  however.  It  seems 
that  the  young  men  are  more  afraid  of  it  than 
the  older  ones.  The  anti-foot-binding  league 
is  working  in  a  way  to  make  friends,  I  think. 
They  intrude  none  of  their  western  religion 
upon  us,  but  write  poems  and  conform  to 
Chinese  etiquette." 

"But,"  remonstrated  Ching  Fo,  "you  must 
remember  that  in  a  great  majority  of  cases  the 
family  life  of  the  Chinese  is  happy  and  that  the 
Chinese  mother  i»  the  best  of  mothers.  Would 
she  continue  to  be  so  if  she  were  allowed  to  run 
about  wherever  she  pleases?" 

"Yes,"  said  Ah  Fat,  "they  have  the  interest 
of  their  families  at  heart  as  much  as  the  men 
have  and  they  have  sorrows  enough  without  our 
inflicting  them.  But,"  said  he  pleasantly,  "a 
daughterless  man's  opinion  is  of  little  value 


CHAPTER  FOUR  83 

and,  after  all,  each  of  us  must  act  according  to 
his  own  judgment." 

So  they  changed  the  subject  and  sipped  tea 
until  the  hour  of  the  rat,  when  by  the  light  of 
the  moon,  Ah  Fat  took  his  rikisha  for  home. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Mencius  said  thus: 

"When  heaven  is  about  to  confer  a  great 
office  on  a  man,  it  exercises  his  mind  with 
suffering  and  his  sinews  and  bones  with  toil. 
It  exposes  his  body  to  hunger  and  confounds 
his  understanding  and  by  all  these  efforts  it 
stimulates  his  mind,  hardens  his  nature  and 
supplies  his  incompetences." 

Ah  Moy  submitted  to  the  process  of  foot- 
binding  without  a  protest.  Obedience,  repres- 
sion of  emotions,  and  a  strange  indifference  to 
physical  pain,  were  inheritances  bequeathed  to 
her  from  uncounted  generations  of  ancestors. 

Bandages  two  and  a  half  yards  long  by  two 
inches  wide  were  drawn  around  her  feet  in 
such  a  way  as  to  force  all  the  toes  except  the 
large  one,  under  the  soles.  Twice  a  day,  and 


CHAPTER  FIVE  85 

for  many  weeks,  they  were  tightened,  each  time 
driving  the  toes  further  under,  until  they  came 
peeping  out  on  the  inside  of  her  instep.  For 
the  first  year  her  nurse  thought  the  muscles 
would  yield  to  the  pressure  and  retain  the 
proper  shape ;  but  poor  little  Ah  Moy's  feet  had 
more  than  their  share  of  elasticity  in  them  and 
every  time  the  bandages  were  taken  off,  the 
muscles  sprang  back  to  their  natural  position 
until  finally  it  became  necessary  to  break  the 
bones.  After  this  was  done  and  additional 
straps  and  bandages  fastened  around  the  instep, 
the  toes  kept  their  place,  but  in  a  few  days 
became  so  swollen  and  painful  that  Ah  Moy 
sat  crying  in  her  room  all  the  day  long.  Her 
little  sleeve  dog  gave  her  no  more  pleasure  and 
she  had  to  hang  her  feet  over  the  foot-board 
of  her  bed  so  as  to  deaden  the  pain.  Her  father 
came  and  gave  her  opium  and  commanded  her 
to  move  about,  but  her  sufferings  had  gone  to 


86  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

a  point  where  she  could  no  longer  obey.  (The 
Italian  Mother  Superior  at  Han  Kow,  told  the 
author  of  this  book  that,  with  the  best  of  care, 
ten  per  cent,  of  the  girls  die  during  the  ordeal 
of  foot-binding.)  Under  her  eyes  came  the 
great,  black  lines,  and  into  her  face  came  that 
curious  shade  of  yellow  that  is  never  seen 
except  in  connection  with  foot-binding.  Ching 
Fo  and  his  wife  both  thought  that  more  than 
likely  the  third  daughter  would  die  under  the 
ordeal.  She  wasted  to  a  skeleton  and  gangrene 
tore  off  great  pieces  of  her  flesh;  blood  poison 
spread  through  her  system  and  fever  painted 
scarlet  patches  on  her  cheeks. 

But  Ten  Wang,  the  God  of  Fate,  had  it  writ- 
ten in  his  book  that  Ah  Moy  was  not  yet  to  die, 
so  he  sent  the  spirit  of  healing  to  brood  over 
her  and  after  three  years  of  suffering,  the  worst 
was  over.  The  color  came  back  to  her  face, 
she  again  found  pleasure  in  insect  music  and 


CHAPTER  FIVE  87 

the  song  of  birds ;  she  heard  the  sighing  of  the 
pines  and  saw  the  shadow  of  the  clouds,  as  they 
threw  dark  patches  on  the  mountain  side;  and 
strange,  oh  passing  strange,  the  refinement  of 
torture  through  which  she  had  passed,  left  upon 
her  an  irresistible  charm — a  charm  which 
comes  only  to  those  who  have  suffered  to  the 
point  of  breaking.  Ching  Fo  saw  it  and  called 
the  attention  of  his  wife  to  the  soft  lines  of 
beauty  that  had  been  wrought  in  their  daugh- 
ter's face. 

"It  is  the  subtle  charm  of  the  little-foot  wo- 
man," said  he. 

"Yes,  yes,"  replied  his  wife,  "she  is  very 
beautiful.  Sing  Lee's  family  will,  no  doubt,  be 
very  proud  of  her." 

"We  must  now  look  to  her  education,"  said 
the  father.  "She  must  learn  to  chant  the  Budd- 
hist prayers,  to  embroider  and  even  to  make 
short  rhymes.  For  although  women  are  not 


88  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

supposed  to  add  much  to  literature,  it  is  very 
becoming  in  them  to  compose  verses." 

Thus  a  new  era  began  for  Ah  Moy.  She 
learned  to  chant  the  long  prayers  that  the  priest 
gave  her,  and  to  drone  them  for  hours  each 
day;  she  embroidered  butterflies  and  lotus 
leaves  and  entered  into  happy  little  contests 
with  her  father  in  verse  making.  On  one 
occasion  when  she  had  gone  with  him  for  a 
walk,  he  was  surprised  to  hear  her  compose  a 
verse  which  to  his  trained  ear,  sounded  well. 

"Father,"  she  said,  "this  place  is  so  delightful 
that  I  feel  as  though  I  could  compose  a  poem  in 
its  honor." 

"Mayhap,  if  the  bird  sings   in  thine  own 
heart,  it  augurs  a  son  who  shall  be  a  poet,"  said 
her  father,  at  which  she  turned  her  face  away 
from  him  and  repeated: 
"A  butterfly  bright  on  the  lotus  is  resting, 
A  bird  in  the  shade  of  the  rushes  is  nesting, 


CHAPTER  FIVE  89 

A    cloud    throws    a    shadow    on    father    and 

daughter, 
And  away  goes  my  verse  on  the  swift-running 

water/' 

"Well  done,  Ah  Moy;  hadst  thou  been  born 
a  boy,  I  should  have  expected  great  things  of 
thee.  Canst  thou  repeat  something  from  one 
of  the  ancient  classics  ?" 

"Shall  I  repeat  the  poem  about  the  young 
man  whose  father  died  and  left  him  so  lonely, 
when  he  was  young,"  she  said. 

"Yes,  if  you  can  do  it  well,"  replied  the 
father. 

But  when  she  tried  to  begin,  her  eyes  filled 
with  tears. 

"Oh  father,  it  is  so  sad,"  she  exclaimed. 

"Yes,"  assented  the  father,  "I  remember  the 
poem.  It  was  written  more  than  two  thousand 
year  ago  by  Liu  Heng.  But  it  is  still  a  favorite 


90  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

with  many.     If  you  can  remember  it  I  should 
like  very  much  to  hear  it." 

Ah  Moy  then  turned  her  face  away  and  re- 
cited each  verse  correctly. 
"I  look  up  and  the  curtains  are  there,  as  of  yore, 
I  look  down  and  there  is  the  mat  on  the  floor, 
These  things  I  behold  but  the  man  is  no  more. 
To  the  infinite  azure  his  spirit  has  flown, 
And  I  am  left  friendless,  uncared  for,  alone, 
Of  solace  bereft  save  to  weep  and  to  moan. 
The  deer  on  the  hillside  caressingly  bleat, 
And  offer  the  grass  for  their  young  ones  to  eat, 
While  birds  of  the  air  to  their  nestlings  bring 

meat. 

But  I,  a  poor  orphan,  must  ever  remain, 
My  heart  still  so  sad  and  o'er  burdened  with 

pain, 

For  him  I  shall  never  see  coming  again. 
'Tis  a  well  worn  old  saying,  which  all  men 

allow, 


CHAPTER  FIVE  91 

That  grief  stamps  the  deepest  of  lines  on  the 

brow. 

Alas !  see  my  hair,  it  is  silvering,  now. 
Alas,  for  my  father,  cut  off  in  his  pride, 
Alas,  that  no  more  I  may  stand  by  his  side. 
Oh,  where  were  the  Gods  when  that  noble  man 

died." 

Ching  Fo  was  so  pleased  to  hear  her  repeat 
the  whole  poem  without  a  mistake  and  with  so 
much  feeling,  that  he  pressed  her  little  brown 
hand  to  his  face,  at  which  Ah  Moy  begged  him 
to  tell  her  a  story  or  repeat  a  verse.  So  he  sat 
down  beside  her  and  asked  if  she  had  not  been 
learning  to  weave  on  her  mother's  hand  loom 
that  day. 

"Yes,  father,  I  have  unwound  a  cocoon  of 
the  wild  silk  worm  and  woven  it  into  cloth.  But 
mamma  says  that  I  must  not  yet  attempt  the 
fine  work  of  our  own  cocoonery." 


92  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"Then  I  shall  tell  you  about  the  star,  Vega, 
which  is  personified  in  Chinese  literature  as  a 
woman  engaged  in  weaving  silk,"  said  her 
father.  "Vega  is  a  brilliant  white  star  in  the 
constellation  called  Lyra,  but  on  the  seventh 
day  of  the  seventh  month  of  each  year,  the 
heavenly  weaver  leaves  her  loom  and  crosses 
over  the  milky  way  to  meet  her  lover,  who  is 
called  the  bull  driver,  and  the  result  of  this 
heavenly  Union  is  an  ever  increasing  cluster  of 
bright  and  beautiful  stars.  The  story  typifies 
the  earthly  marriage,  which  has  for  its  object 
the  sacred  duty  of  child-bearing.  I  think  the 
time  has  come  when  I  should  tell  you,  my  child, 
that  only  through  self-control  in  the  marriage 
bed  can  you  insure  to  your  offspring  sound 
bodies  and  vigorous  minds.  To  keep  the 
thoughts  away  from  sensual  pleasure  is  a  most 
important  duty.  Children  that  are  deprived  of 
an  inheritance  of  pure  thought  while  they  are 


CHAPTER  FIVE  93 

yet  unborn,  come  handicapped  into  the  world, 
for  Nature  takes  revenge  upon  the  offspring 
for  the  sins  of  their  parents.  These  are  ques- 
tions of  pure  morality  which,  by  the  custom  of 
China,  are  given  into  the  hands  of  the  women. 
When  you  are  older  you  will  know  that  China 
has  withstood  the  shocks  and  ravages  of  time, 
better  than  any  other  nation,  and  this  is  greatly 
due  to  the  virtuous  conduct  of  parents.  Tell 
me, daughter,  do  you  understand  my  meaning?" 

"Yes,  father  dear,  my  mother  and  the  nuns 
at  the  monastery  have  often  told  me  that  the 
welfare  of  the  children  lies  in  the  hands  of  the 
parents.  But,  I  think  the  story  of  the  heavenly 
weaver  the  most  beautiful  one  I  have  ever 
heard." 

Such  confidences  made  Ah  Moy  and  her 
father  very  dear  to  each  other.  She  knew  that 
she  was  betrothed  to  Ting  Ho  and  that  she 
should  owe  to  his  family  her  untiring  service; 


94  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

but  she  had  never  seen  him  and  her  heart  was 
every  bit  her  father's.  Her  brother  was  now 
old  enough  to  tyrannize  over  her  and  in  many 
ways  to  command  her.  She  had  learned  to 
treat  him  with  ceremonious  respect,  never  pre- 
ceding him  into  a  room  nor  partaking  of  food 
until  he  had  been  served;  but  in  her  heart  of 
hearts  she  felt  that  hers  was  a  higher  mission 
in  life  than  his.  She  felt  that  he  represented 
the  ancestral  tombs  while  she  represented  the 
children  to  be  born,  and  in  fancy  she  could  hear 
their  voices  ever  counseling  her  to  be  faithful. 
Both  her  sisters  were  now  preparing  their 
wedding  garments,  for  both  had,  like  herself, 
been  betrothed  in  childhood.  Ah  Moy,  num- 
ber one,  had  been  betrothed  by  a  go-between 
to  a  young  man  who  lived  in  another  province. 
Aside  from  ascertaining  that  he  belonged  to  a 
good  family,  Ching  Fo  knew  little  about  him; 
how  cruel  and  exacting  he  might  be,  there  was 


CHAPTER  FIVE  95 

no  means  of  knowing.  Neither  did  it  seem  a 
matter  of  great  moment  to  him.  The  marriage 
was  in  the  interest  of  both  families  and  this 
was  the  only  thing  to  be  considered.  "You 
must  have  no  opinions  of  your  own"  the  father 
told  his  girls,  "it  is  the  duty  of  daughters-in- 
law  to  serve  the  family  that  adopts  them. 
Among  your  wedding  gifts  will  be  the  cus- 
tomary bottle  of  poison  with  which  to  end  your 
life  if  it  becomes  unbearable;  that  is  the  only 
proper  release  from  earthly  trouble.  It  is  an 
honorable  discharge,  and  does  not  disgrace 
your  parents." 

Ah  Moy,  number  one,  understood;  she  knew 
that  the  new  home  to  which  she  was  going  was 
for  better  or  for  worse,  with  no  appeal  except 
by  death.  But  even  so,  she  was  very  happy. 
No  knowledge  had  she  of  privileges  or  rights ; 
no  spirit  of  desire  had  ever  entered  the  calm 
repose  of  her  mind.  The  wedding  garments 


96  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

were  to  be  cut  precisely  alike;  the  embroidery 
was  also  of  ancient  design — butterflies  and 
bamboo  leaves,  dragons  and  lotus  flowers,  in- 
terspersed with  the  ever-present  cherry  blos- 
soms— made  up  the  variety.  The  twenty  pairs 
of  shoes,  the  twenty  pairs  of  linen  trousers,  the 
two  wedding  dresses,  the  silk  bedquilts  and 
curtains,  the  lacquer  vases  and  porcelain  bowls, 
all  and  all  were  to  be  in  the  same  conservative 
style.  Tedious  and  tiresome  and  for  many 
days,  the  work  continued ;  but  at  last  the  prepa- 
rations were  complete  and  the  servants  detailed 
to  take  the  young  woman  to  the  home  of  her 
husband.  Before  she  could  go,  however,  the 
etiquette  of  China  required  that  she  should 
lament  for  a  week,  yea,  even  that  she  should 
weep  and  moan  aloud,  because  she  was  about 
to  leave  her  father's  house  and  take  up  her 
abode  among  strangers.  It  was  hard  for  the 
happy  girl  to  lie  face  downward  and  keep  the 


CHAPTER  FIVE  97 

outward  semblance  of  sorrow;  but  it  was  not 
in  the  Ching  Fo  blood  to  omit  any  of  the  an- 
cestral usages,  so  she  tore  her  hair  and  assumed 
a  sad  look.  Each  day  found  her  crying,  with 
red  eyes,  (made  so  with  vermilion)  and  utter- 
ing words  of  endearment  for  her  family  and 
friends.  "Oh  dear,  it  is  so  hard  to  leave  home 
and  go  to  live  among  strangers!  Oh  dear,  I 
shall  never  see  the  home  of  my  girlhood  again !" 
and  so  on  and  so  on. 

The  new  home  to  which  she  was  going  was, 
as  yet,  a  far  off  picture  which  she  saw  only 
darkly.  She  knew  that  she  was  leaving  her 
father's  house  to  take  up  the  duty  of  child- 
bearing,  in  a  family  whose  ancestral  line  was 
as  jealously  guarded  as  her  own;  but  she  had 
no  idea  of  what  the  change  might  mean.  So 
she  cried  according  to  rule  until  the  appointed 
day,  when  there  was  hurrying  of  servants  and 
gathering  of  goods  and  the  formal  leaving  of 


98  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

the  parental  roof.  Beside  her  four  chair 
bearers,  there  accompanied  her  two  lantern 
bearers,  two  men  to  run  ahead  and  six  rikisha 
laden  with  her  effects.  She  was  very  timid, 
for  she  had  never  been  away  from  her  home 
before,  but  she  bore  up  bravely  and  "kept  the 
face"  as  a  woman  should  do.  The  etiquette  of 
the  occasion  demanded  that  she  must  neither 
speak,  nor  partake  of  food,  during  the  journey, 
so  she  sat  tired  and  hungry  for  many  an  hour 
while  her  servants  rested  or  slept  in  the  shade 
of  wayside  trees. 

After  a  two  days  journey  she  came  to  the 
house  of  her  husband's  family  and  found  the 
incense  sticks  lit,  the  parents-in-law  in  their 
best  clothes  and  a  feast  prepared  for  many 
guests.  No  lover's  greeting  however  was  in 
store  for  her,  nor  any  kindly  act  to  relieve  her 
of  fatigue.  But  when  the  door  was  thrown 
open  she  took  her  place  beside  her  mother-in- 


CHAPTER  FIVE  99 

law.  The  guests  came  in  swarms  to  be  waited 
upon,  to  all  of  whom  she  bowed  according  to 
the  prescribed  rules  and  forms  while  she  served 
them  with  tea  and  sweets.  Sneering  remarks 
about  her  clothes  and  her  feet,  brought  no 
frown  upon  her  placid  brow  and  when  some 
one  threw  straw  upon  her  glossy  hair,  she  bore 
it  so  patiently  that  her  mother-in-law  was  much 
pleased.  For  three  days  the  festivities  con- 
tinued, during  which  time  the  bride  was  not 
permitted  to  leave  her  post  of  duty,  but  the 
fourth  day  she  was  given  to  her  liege  lord  whom 
she  now  beheld  for  the  first  time.  In  appear- 
ance he  was  far  from  what  she  had  hoped,  yet 
she  received  him  with  the  calm  exterior  of  a 
well-bred  Chinese  woman  and  went  about  her 
work  as  uncomplainingly  as  though  she  had 
selected  a  husband  for  herself.  According  to 
her  philosophy  of  thought  she  was  now  face  to 
face  with  some  sin  committed  in  a  former  life 


100  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

which  must  be  expiated  by  patient  endurance, 
therefore  she  banished  all  thought  of  self, 
offered  no  disobedience  to  the  father  and 
mother  who  had  so  cruelly  married  her  to  their 
defective  son  and  wrote  no  word  of  dissatis- 
faction to  her  own  parents.  Ten  Wang  had 
decreed  it,  was  the  only  thought  she  permitted 
herself. 

Two  years  after  the  wedding  of  Ah  Moy, 
number  one,  occurred  the  "going  out  of  the 
house"  of  Ah  Moy,  number  two.  Like  her 
sister,  she  had  been  betrothed  by  a  go-between 
and  went  a  long  way  from  home.  The  same 
elaborate  preparations  had  filled  Ching  Fo's 
house ;  the  same  parental  advice  had  been  given 
and  the  same  weeping  and  wailing  had  been 
performed  by  the  bride  for  a  week  preceding 
the  marriage. 

Through  it  all,  Ching  Fo  maintained  the 
composure  and  dignity  of  a  Chinese  gentleman. 


CHAPTER  FIVE  101 

No  anxious  lines  were  permitted  to  knit  his 
brow,  although  for  several  years  in  succession, 
there  had  been  a  scarcity  of  crops  in  the  prov- 
ince, and  ugly  rumors  of  famine  disturbed  the 
neighborhood.  When  the  two  daughters  were 
gone,  his  wife  said  to  him : 

"Let  us  wait  a  little  before  giving  the  third 
daughter  in  marriage.  She  is  young  and  there 
is  plenty  of  time." 

"No,"  replied  Ching  Fo,  "first  consideration 
must  be  given  to  the  great  things  of  life  and  the 
great  things  are  the  settling  of  the  domestic 
relations." 

"But  if  the  drouth  continues,"  questioned 
she,  with  womanly  anxiety. 

"If  the  drouth  continues,"  he  replied,  "we 
shall  bear  it,  I  hope,  as  patiently  as  did  our 
ancestors.  Drouths  have  always  come  and 
gone.  If  this  one  continues,  why  then  it  con- 
tinues. But  it  is  not  well  to  invite  it.  Specu- 


102  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

lating  upon  misfortune  is  an  invitation  for  it 
to  come." 

The  third  daughter  had  now  become  almost 
indispensable  to  her  mother.  Her  nimble 
fingers  were  never  tired  of  sewing  and  weaving 
and  helping  with  the  housework.  The  pretty 
clothes  for  her  own  wedding  were  being  made 
and  laid  away,  as  time  and  means  permitted, 
and  the  bird  sang  in  her  heart  as  it  always  does 
in  the  heart  of  the  young  and  the  good. 

In  spite  of  his  habitual  composure,  anxious 
thoughts  crept,  from  time  to  time,  into  Ching 
Fo's  mind.  His  rice  fields  that  were  wont  to 
look  so  beautiful  and  green  beneath  the  sum- 
mer sun,  were  parched  and  brown  and  the 
harvest  which  is  promised  to  those  who  sow, 
was  withering  beyond  recovery.  He  knew 
what  danger  lay  in  the  falling  brook  and  the 
yellow  leaf  and  he  could  not  prevent  fore- 
bodings. Mile  after  mile  of  the  marvelous 


CHAPTER  FIVE  103 

purple  that  characterizes  the  arid  atmosphere 
quivered  in  the  air  and  the  mountains  became 
apparitions  that  angled  up  to  meet  the  unfailing 
blue  of  the  sky.  Occasionally  at  mid-day  a 
high  cloud  lay  motionless  above  a  phantom 
peak,  but  it  was  the  wool  white  cloud  that 
throws  no  drops  of  water  down.  All  this  Ching 
Fo  saw  and  his  soul  flitted  out  into  the  dazzling 
sea  of  color  and  was  very  sad.  He  felt  an  un- 
known fear,  as  though  a  crisis  of  some  kind 
hung  over  him.  For  days  at  a  time  a  psychic 
strain  seemed  to  foreshadow  misfortune.  His 
wife  and  his  third  daughter  saw  the  change  in 
him  and  watched  anxiously  for  the  usual 
cheerfulness  that  characterized  his  life. 

But  as  the  days  swept  by,  things  grew  worse 
instead  of  better,  for  rumors  of  foreign  war- 
ships gathering  in  the  ports,  and  ugly  upris- 
ings of  the  people,  were  added  to  other  anx- 
ieties, and  as  Ching  Fo  looked  away  into  the 


104  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

purple  mist,  he  saw  that  another  apparition  had 
taken  its  place  beside  the  one  called  Drouth,  an 
apparition  no  less  terrible,  whose  name  was 
War. 

From  time  immemorial  the  evil  spirit  that 
dwells  in  foreign  affairs  had  spread  dismay 
among  the  Chinese;  but  now  it  threatened  to 
tear  asunder  the  nation.  Ching  Fo  seldom 
mentioned  these  thing  to  the  women  of  his 
household ;  but  now  he  felt  bound  to  explain  to 
them  that  nothing  could  be  so  fraught  with 
harm  as  to  have  the  quiet  of  their  home  broken 
into  by  a  swarm  of  foreign  soldiers.  Not  much 
of  this  could  Ah  Moy  understand,  however; 
she  thought  that  a  few  men  might  have  to  be 
sacrificed  and  a  few  homes  bereft  of  their  sons, 
but  beyond  that,  the  fears  of  her  father  were 
meaningless  and  failed  to  arouse  anything 
more  than  a  ripple  on  the  smooth  surface  of  her 
life. 


CHAPTER  FIVE  105 

The  week  of  lamentation  had  now  arrived 
and  all  her  preparations  were  made  for  leaving 
home.  With  a  pious  sense  of  duty,  she  laid 
aside  her  work  and  assumed  the  garb  of  sor- 
row, for  no  act  of  hers  should  be  left  undone 
that  might  detract  from  the  proprieties  of  the 
occasion. 

"I  would  not  disgrace  my  family,"  she  said, 
"by  appearing  happy  at  leaving  home." 

So  with  loud  moaning  and  crying,  she  lay 
face  downward  on  the  bed  and  repeated  the 
words,  as  both  her  sisters  had  done,  "Oh  dear, 
I  am  so  sad  because  I  am  about  to  leave 
my  father  and  mother  and  go  to  live  with 
strangers.  Oh  dear,  I  must  now  leave  the 
home  of  my  girlhood  and  go  to  the  home  of  my 
husband !" 


CHAPTER  VI. 

"I  hate  the  threatening  clash  of  arms, 
When  fierce  retainers  throng, 
I  hate  the  soldier's  revels, 
And  the  sound  of  fife  and  song. 
But  I  love  to  seek  a  quiet  nook, 
And  some  old,  old  volume  bring; 
And  hear  the  wild  birds  singing 
And  see  the  flowers  spring." 

— Wang  Wu,  705  A.  D. 

But  the  signs  were  not  right  when  the  third 
daughter  was  born,  and  for  this  reason  the  God 
of  Fate  had  it  written  in  his  book  that  she 
should  be  a  child  of  mystery  and  grief. 
"And  having  writ,  moved  on 
And  not  her  piety  nor  wit 
Could  lure  him  back  to  cancel  half  a  line, 
Nor  all  her  tears  wash  out  one  word  of  it." 

The  happy  days  of  lamentation,  during  which 
Ah  Moy  cried  outwardly  but  inwardly  was  full 


CHAPTER  SIX  107 

of  joy,  brought  not  the  wedding  day,  for  Ten 
Wang  had  already  turned  the  river  of  her  life 
into  quite  another  channel. 

Shut  in  from  the  outside  world  and  her  time 
filled  with  pleasant  duties,  Ah  Moy  had  no  con- 
ception of  the  fact  that  over  China  a  storm 
gathered  which  would  shake  it  to  the  very 
center.  A  more  prophetic  ear  than  hers  might 
have  heard  the  rumbling,  and  a  more  prophetic 
eye  might  have  seen  the  darkness  that  was  set- 
tling over  the  land;  but  the  third  daughter's 
heart  kept  the  even  tenor  of  its  ways  until  the 
last  day  of  her  lamentation,  when  a  sudden 
crash  came  out  of  the  blue  that  turned  her  little 
world  all  upside  down. 

It  was  nothing  new  for  that  dark  mountain 
called  International  Law,  to  smoke  and  occa- 
sionally throw  up  lurid  flashes,  but  the  little  of 
it  that  reached  the  women  was  not  enough  to 
arouse  anxiety.  Their  lives  were  too  secluded 


108  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

to  be  affected  by  ordinary  political  questions; 
but  now,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  as  it  were, 
there  poured  out  of  that  dead  old  crater  an 
Aetna  of  ashes  which  none  could  fail  to  see. 

Sing  Lee  was  the  first  to  bring  the  news  and 
to  inform  Ching  Fo  that  his  son  who  was  so 
soon  to  be  a  bride-groom,  had  been  called  out 
to  fight  for  his  country. 

"Pandemonium  is  loose,"  said  he,  as  he 
slipped  into  a  chair,  "and  the  Righteous  De- 
fenders (Boxers)  are  preparing  for  an  active 
campaign.  The  foreigners  are  again  trying  to 
pluck  us  as  a  housewife  plucks  a  goose  and  we 
must  drive  them  back." 

"I  feared  it,  I  feared  it,"  said  Ching  Fo, 
trembling  with  emotion,  "on  the  Yang-tse,  it 
is  the  English,  to  the  north  of  us  the  Russian, 
while  on  the  coast  it  is  the  Germans." 

At  this  he  groaned  aloud  and  added,  "we 
cannot  endure  it,  we  cannot  endure  it." 


CHAPTER  SIX  109 

"  Tis  true  and  a  pity  it  is,"  said  Sing  Lee, 
"it  is  useless  for  us  to  tell  the  foreigners  that 
what  the  western  world  calls  prosperity  has  no 
resemblance  to  our  own  ideas  on  that  subject; 
it  is  useless  to  tell  them  that  we  do  not  wish  to 
enter  the  turmoil  of  the  world.  They  cannot 
appreciate  the  Chinese  love  for  seclusion  and 
reverence  for  ancient  customs." 

At  this  juncture  in  the  conversation,  Ah  Fat 
arrived  and  informed  the  two  men  that  the 
Righteous  Defenders  were  gathering  in  the 
neighborhood  and  that,  as  they  came  to  the 
rescue  of  the  country  without  compensation, 
they  must  be  fed  and,  if  need  be,  clothed. 

(The  Righteous  Defenders  are  a  body  of 
young  men  called  in  China,  "Society  Men"  who 
meet  in  secret  to  watch  and  if  necessary  pro- 
tect the  home  and  ancient  tombs.) 

As  this  phase  of  the  case  came  into  Ching 
Fo's  consciousness,  he  sprang  quickly  from  his 


110  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

chair  and  went  into  the  open  court,  for  now  it 
was  a  case  in  which  the  women  must  be  con- 
sulted. The  amount  of  food  which  they  could 
contribute  and  the  number  of  charms  and 
bandages  they  could  prepare  were  questions 
which  belonged  strictly  to  their  department. 
As  he  turned  toward  the  kitchen,  he  saw  that 
the  street  was  full  of  wild-eyed  runners  and 
that  everything  was  in  a  state  of  general  mad- 
ness. People  were  shouting  to  get  themselves 
carried  hither  and  thither  and  the  poor  coolie, 
finding  himself  belabored  on  every  hand, 
poured  into  the  din  a  constant  jabber  of  dialect. 
At  the  back  gate  of  the  bungalow,  frightened 
females  were  holding  such  counsel  of  war  as 
only  women  can.  The  wife  of  Sing  Lee  had 
been  among  the  first  to  arrive  and  had  informed 
Mrs.  Ching  Fo  of  her  son's  response  to  the  call 
of  the  Righteous  Defenders.  This  meant,  of 
course,  that  the  young  folks  must  wait  for  a 


CHAPTER  SIX  111 

more  auspicious  time  for  their  marriage.  Ah 
Moy  was  still  lamenting  when  her  mother 
called  her  to  come  and  hear  what  her  pros- 
pective mother-in-law  had  to  say.  Before  she 
could  make  herself  presentable,  however,  a 
dozen  more  women  had  invaded  the  kitchen 
and  were  expressing  their  opinions  concerning 
the  situation. 

"It  is  all  the  missionaries,"  said  one  woman, 
"they  have  made  the  spirits  angry  by  selling 
coal  oil  to  be  used  in  the  lamps.  Everybody 
knows  that  our  ancestors  never  used  anything 
but  nut  oil  on  the  shrines." 

"Yes,"  said  Lee  Loy,  "and  those  people  build 
their  houses  without  any  regard  to  the  effect 
upon  the  climate.  That  is  another  thing  that 
makes  the  spirits  angry." 

Just  then  a  wrinkled  old  woman  was  helped 
to  her  feet  and  gave  it  as  her  opinion  that  there 
were  worse  things  than  the  missionaries: 


112  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"The  railroads  are  creeping  into  the  country 
and  they  do  say  that  they  lay  their  foundations 
on  children's  bones." 

"Yes,"  cried  another  of  these  wise  ones,  "and 
they  do  say  that  the  foreign  devils  use  children's 
eyes  in  making  their  medicines." 

Then  Mrs.  Ching  Fo  capped  the  climax  by 
remarking  that  the  foreign  bible  commanded 
a  man  to  leave  father  and  mother  and  follow 
Christ. 

"Which,  as  you  all  know,  is  in  direct  con- 
flict with  the  teaching  of  Confucius." 

This  produced  such  a  storm  of  disapproba- 
tion that  when  Ching  Fo  appeared  on  the  scene, 
he  could  not  make  himself  heard.  He  stood  for 
some  moments  waiting  for  the  babel  to  cease, 
but  as  it  continued,  he  took  the  wonder-eyed  Ah 
Moy  by  the  hand  and  returned  to  the  front 
room. 

"The  women  are  swarming,"  he  said,  "and 


CHAPTER  SIX  113 

I  was  not  able  to  get  a  hearing.  When  they 
settle  down  a  little,  I  will  go  back  and  see  what 
can  be  done  about  food.  They  all  seem  to  lay 
the  trouble  to  the  missionaries  and  perhaps  they 
are  right.  Sometimes  women  are  led  into  cor- 
rect conclusions,  even  though  they  are  only 
females." 

Then  Ah  Fat  testified  that  he  also  believed 
the  trouble  to  be  caused  by  the  missionaries. 

"All  three  of  the  religions  of  China  are  suited 
to  the  needs  of  the  people;  but  Christianity  is 
a  renegade  which  we  must  drive  out.  I  know 
that  Confucius  taught,  twenty-five  hundred 
years  ago,  that  nation  should  not  lift  up  the 
sword  against  nation;  but  if  the  foreigners 
persist  in  breaking  into  our  country,  we  must 
drive  them  back.  They  are  the  intruders  and 
they  must  take  the  consequences." 

So  chattered  the  women  and  so  argued  the 
men,  and  so  gathered  the  storm  which  was 


114  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

about  to  break  upon  their  defenseless  heads. 
The  third  daughter  listened  and  wondered  and 
tried  to  grasp  the  meaning  of  what  she  saw  and 
heard;  tried  to  understand  why  the  men 
gathered  in  knots  on  the  street  and  why  the 
faces  of  the  women  were  pallid  with  fear.  And 
as  she  saw  the  fire  creep  into  the  calm  eye  of  her 
father,  a  great  desire  seized  her  to  become  a 
part  of  the  wild  ocean  that  was  lashing  itself 
into  foam.  If  martyrs  were  needed  why  might 
not  she  be  one  ? 

When  a  lull  in  the  conversation  gave  her  an 
opportunity  she  whispered  in  the  ear  of  her 
father,  a  desire  to  help  serve  her  country.  But 
her  patriotism  received  a  check  when  he 
answered : 

"A  little  foot-girl  can  do  nothing.  You  must 
wait." 

At  which  Ah  Moy  glanced  down  at  her 
crippled  feet  and  said : 


CHAPTER  SIX  115 

"Yes,  I  can  do  nothing  but  wait." 
It  was  noon  before  any  definite  plan  had  been 
fixed  upon  and  the  women  induced  to  go  about 
preparing  food  for  the  Righteous  Defenders. 
The  work,  however,  went  bravely  on  when  once 
it  was  commenced.  Kettles  of  fluffy  rice  stood 
in  long  rows  and  pans  of  dried  mushrooms  with 
inviting  squares  of  pork  simmered  over  the  fire. 
Bandages  with  which  to  wind  the  legs  were 
prepared  and  many  a  good  luck  sign  stitched 
upon  blouses  and  shoes. 

Toward  night  the  men  congregated  at  "The 
Hall  of  the  Holy  Country"  to  further  discuss 
the  situation  and  devise  ways  and  means  for 
the  advancement  of  the  cause.  Patriotic  pic- 
tures were  hung  on  the  walls  of  the  building, 
and  mottoes,  selected  from  the  writings  of 
Chinese  sages,  were  repeated  or  written  by 
skillful  hands  on  doors  and  lintels.  The 
Righteous  Defenders  formed  into  long  lines  to 


116  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

practice  their  mysterious  drill  and  to  turn  their 
faces  in  the  directions  from  whence  come  cour- 
age and  spiritual  enlightenment.  They  also  in- 
voked the  Gods  and  the  spirits  of  their  ancestors. 
Ting  Ho  was  with  them — the  embodiment  of 
a  superstitious  Chinaman,  calm,  head  erect, 
ceremoniously  polite,  without  a  flicker  of 
emotion  in  his  coal-black  eyes,  although  he  had 
sprung  from  home  and  wedding  feast  into  the 
welter  of  war.  On  his  blouse  was  embroidered 
that  great  symbol  of  purity,  the  lotus.  Placed 
there  by  a  virtuous  mother,  he  held  it  as  a 
sacred  trust  and  as  security  that  no  thought  of 
carnal  desire  should  enter  his  soul.  As  he 
marched  around  the  hall  in  line  with  his  com- 
rades, he  lit  an  incense  stick  and  reverently 
placed  it  in  the  ashes  before  the  White  Tiger, 
then  wheeled  and  stood  motionless  beside  his 
companion  in  arms. 

As  the  evening  grew  apace,  the  old  men  came 


CHAPTER  SIX  117 

in,  one  by  one,  to  give  counsel  and  speak  words 
of  encouragement.  Leaning  heavily  upon  a 
walking  stick  Ting  Sin,  a  man  of  great  age, 
pointed  to  a  motto  on  the  wall  which  read: 
"The  strong  shall  not  prevail",  and  in  courte- 
ous language  called  the  attention  of  the  young 
soldiers  to  the  fact  that  they  were  members  of 
an  ancient  order  which  had,  from  time  imme- 
morial, sprung  to  the  defense  of  its  country. 
He  reminded  them  that  only  men  of  unspotted 
reputation  were  eligible  to  their  ranks  and 
urged  them  to  remember  that  they  were  pro- 
tected by  the  Gods. 

"It  is,"  said  he,  "one  of  the  oldest  traditions 
of  China  that  the  weak  may  overthrow  the 
strong.  You  are  not  training  for  public  au- 
diences nor  for  public  display ;  but  for  a  system 
of  self  defense,  in  the  most  exact  sense  of  the 
word.  You  must  rely  for  victory  upon  the 
strength  of  your  opponent.  If  you  are  true, 


118  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

there  will  come  a  power  from  heaven  to  turn 
away  the  bullets  of  your  adversaries.  The  Gods 
are  with  you  and  you  need  not  fear.  We  look 
to  you  for  protection  against  an  enemy  who 
comes  to  despoil  us  of  our  homes.  It  is  armed 
with  prodigious  weapons  of  destruction ;  but 
you  have  recourse  to  a  higher  power." 

When  he  had  finished  speaking  the  young 
soldiers  bowed,  retreated  three  steps  and  bowed 
again,  then  wheeled  and  assumed  a  respectful 
attitude  toward  Ching  Fo,  who  now  began  to 
speak.  His  voice  came  forth  in  the  gentle  tones 
of  a  man  of  sorrow;  he  disclaimed  the  honor- 
able years  and  the  eloquence  of  the  distin- 
guished gentleman  who  had  preceded  him ;  but 
he  arose  to  call  the  attention  of  the  Righteous 
Defenders  to  the  fact  that  concessions  granted 
to  foreigners  either  for  purposes  of  trade  or  for 
religious  propaganda,  had  always  resulted  in 
the  setting  up  of  claims  adverse  to  the  wishes 
of  China,  by  the  newcomers. 


CHAPTER  SIX  119 

"China,"  declared  he,  has  no  need  of  the  out- 
side world.  When  once  the  reins  are  relaxed 
and  the  western  civilization  established  in  our 
land,  the  end  is  in  sight.  The  labor-saving  ma- 
chines, of  which  the  foreigners  boast  so  much, 
are  not  suited  to  our  use.  Our  country  is  too 
densely  populated  to  change  its  labor  system. 
It  has  already  come  to  pass,"  exclaimed  he, 
raising  his  voice,  "that  the  cotton  mills  of 
Shanghai  have  flooded  the  markets  with  goods 
which  are  sold  at  prices  below  that  of  our  home 
weave  and  the  result  is,  that  in  some  cases,  the 
little  handlooms  of  the  women  are  idle  and  the 
workers  have  died  of  hunger.  But  these  facts 
are  nothing  to  the  foreign  devil  who  wishes  to 
sell  his  machinery.  It  must  come  that  we  shall 
drive  this  horde  of  intruders  back." 

Following  him  Ah  Fat  made  a  short  but  elo- 
quent address.  He  quoted  the  words  of  a  noted 
sage,  who  said : 


120  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"All  the  black-haired  men  are  brethren  and 
they  shall  prevail  against  the  barbarians  who 
come  from  other  lands.  Destiny  has  watched 
over  you  and  prepared  you  for  this  day.  The 
God  of  War  is  with  you  and  you  may  command 
the  hosts  of  heaven.  Let  them  thunder  with 
their  death-dealing  inventions.  Yours  is  the 
greater  force.  Consider  only  this,  that  a  holy 
cause  confronts  a  huge  and  many-tongued  in- 
truder who  will,  if  not  driven  back,  despoil  us 
of  our  homes.  Remember,  too,  that  when  all 
else  fails  you  have  recourse  to  the  Oriental  sui- 
cide. It  is  a  sacrament  by  which  you  may  pass 
immediately  into  the  arms  of  your  ancestors. 
It  is  honorable  and  it  is  better  than  to  permit 
yourselves  to  be  taken  by  the  enemy." 

When  he  had  concluded  the  Righteous  De- 
fenders again  bowed  and  marched  around  the 
room,  placing  incense  sticks  before  each  mystic 
shrine ;  then  passed  out  in  single  file  to  the  place 
assigned  them  for  the  night. 


CHAPTER  SIX  121 

Poor  Ting  Ho,  the  son  to  whom  his  father 
looked  forward  for  support  in  his  declining 
years,  was  even  now  but  a  memory.  Child  of 
a  mother  whose  natural  sense,  of  rectitude  was 
great  but  whose  ignorance  and  superstition 
were  also  great,  he  had  drawn  in  with  her  milk 
the  excessive  superstitions  of  his  ancestors 
and  was  willing  to  trust  to  the  spirits  to  save 
him  from  an  enemy  equipped  with  modern  shot 
and  shell. 

For  a  few  days  the  women  worked  steadily 
to  prepare  such  articles  as  in  their  judgment 
would  be  of  use  to  the  men  when  on  the  march ; 
money  was  contributed  and  a  few  old  guns 
were  collected,  but  still  the  equipments  were 
far  from  adequate.  Ah  Moy's  willing  hands 
had  helped  with  the  clothing  and  other  acces- 
sories of  the  soldier's  kit  and  on  the  appointed 
day  she  stood  with  the  married  women  and  saw 
her  betrothed  march  away. 


CHAPTER  VU. 

Restless,  I  stand  upon  the  beach  and  gaze, 
Because  I  know  not  where  my  bark  may  be, 

I  see  the  mountains  through  an  autumn  haze, 
I  see  the  ships  returning  from  the  sea. 

I  see  the  farmer  coming  through  the  maize, 
But  none,  O,  no  one  comes  to  beckon  me. 
— Wang  Chi.  6th  Century. 

A  few  tears  shed  in  solitude,  a  few  poems  to 
commemorate  the  memory  of  Ting  Ho,  and  a 
little  shadow  in  her  dark  eyes,  were  all  that 
told  the  story  of  the  third  daughter's  wedding; 
for  she  was  too  well  grounded  in  Oriental 
etiquette  to  exhibit  any  signs  of  grief  or 
disappointment. 

"Duty,"  she  said  to  her  father,  "is  the  first 
law  of  Buddha,  and  I  am  content  to  leave  events 
to  heaven." 

Nothing  had  ever  happened  to  arouse  in  her 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  123 

the  passional  nature.  She  had  not  even  been 
permitted  to  feel  the  thrill  of  her  lover's  hand 
as  he  passed  her  father's  gate  to  join  the  main 
army  which  lay  two  hundred  miles  away.  (In 
the  literature  of  China  heroines  are  seldom  de- 
picted as  charmers  of  men  or  as  languishing  for 
love,  but  rather  as  obedient  daughters  who  are 
willing  to  sacrifice  their  lives  for  duty.)  A  few 
times  she  had  seen  him  through  the  bars  of  her 
window,  or  through  a  crack  in  the  fence  and 
she  knew  that  he  was  straight  as  an  arrow 
and  comely  to  look  upon ;  but  all  other  love  was 
asleep  in  the  far  back  recesses  of  her  heart  and 
she  settled  easily  into  the  duties  of  the  home 
life,  with  her  mother.  Her  father  told  her 
that  it  was  the  duty  of  women  to  keep  the  look 
of  a  Buddha  in  their  faces  and  to  come  into 
new  conditions  without  complaint,  and  such 
was  her  training  that  she  was  able  to  obey. 
After  the  excitement  of  helping  off  the  sol- 


124  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

diers  was  over,  and  life  .had  fallen  into  its  ac- 
customed groove,  Ching  Fo  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  the  drouth  which  was  now  bearing  down 
upon  them  with  all  the  fury  of  an  angry  God, 
The  people  were  restless  and  alarmed,  and 
scarcity  of  food  was  making  itself  felt  among 
the  poor.  The  priests  saw  the  need  of  doing 
something  to  allay  the  fears  of  their  followers 
and  therefore  appointed  a  festival  to  the  Rain 
Dragon.  Ah  Moy's  nimble  fingers  were  the 
first  to  begin  sewing  together  the  pretty  pieces 
of  silk  which  were  to  cover  the  great  skeleton. 
For  several  days  the  women  joined  in  the  work 
and  when  it  was  finished  the  priests  came  down 
the  hill,  bringing  an  old  frame,  made  of  hoops 
and  bamboo,  and  pumpkin  eyes,  over  which 
they  drew  the  silken  skin,  touching  it  here  and 
there  with  gold,  until  gills  and  claws  and  eyes 
were  one  splendid  glare  of  color.  As  the  pious 
laborers  raised  the  glittering  thing  to  their 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  125 

shoulders,  Ah  Moy  thought  that  now  the 
drouth  would  surely  be  broken;  but  the  days 
continued  to  pass  without  a  hint  of  rain,  and 
she  made  excuses  for  the  Gods  very  much  as 
others  do  who  pray  and  receive  no  answer. 

Ching  Fo,  however,  consulted  an  astrologer 
and  learned  from  him  that  the  planets  prog- 
nosticated plagues  and  other  occurrences  which 
bring  distress  upon  men.  This  information 
spurred  him  on  to  make  still  further  attempts  at 
pacifying  the  powers  above.  He  kept  fires  of 
wormwood  and  chamomile  burning  before  his 
door  and  contributed  his  much  beloved  son  to 
a  crusade  which  the  priests  started  out  on  a 
march  through  the  famine-stricken  province. 
Two  hundred  boys  wrere  selected  to  assist  at 
this  pilgrimage,  all  of  whom  repaired  to  the 
temple  and  scourged  themselves  and  submitted 
to  other  torture.  They  wore  ashen  colored  gar- 
ments fastened  with  yellow  sashes,  in  the  end 


126  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

of  which  were  points  of  iron  to  strike  against 
their  legs  and  keep  the  wounds  already  made 
there,  open  and  bleeding.  Incense  and  mag- 
nificent banners  of  silk  and  gold  were  carried 
before  this  procession  and  their  entrance  into 
each  village  was  welcomed  by  the  ringing  of 
bells  and  the  burning  of  paper  money.  As 
they  passed  from  place  to  place,  the  people 
vied  with  each  other  in  works  of  charity  and 
good  will;  and  gold  and  precious  stones  were 
contributed  to  the  priests  in  such  quantities 
that  they  became  a  burden.  For  forty  days 
the  crusaders  kept  moving  from  place  to  place, 
praying  and  casting  out  devils;  but  the  sky 
remained  as  blue  and  the  sun  shone  as  fiercely 
as  when  they  started. 

The  question  of  food  was  already  acute  on 
their  line  of  march,  and  the  stench  of  dead 
bodies  arose  from  many  a  house.  The  scarcity 
of  water  was  augmented  by  reports  that  some 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  127 

of  the  springs  had  been  poisoned  and,  taking 
it  all  in  all,  the  crusade  was  abandoned. 

Ching  Fo's  estate  had  suffered  greatly,  for 
it  lay  open  to  the  horde  of  Righteous  Defend- 
ers, who,  unfed,  unpaid,  but  strong  in  the  faith 
that  it  was  their  mission  to  save  China,  went 
swarming  over  it,  consuming  whatsoever  they 
could  find  to  support  life. 

Ah  Mby  waited  in  primitive  style  for  news 
of  her  lover, — but  she  had  no  possible  means 
of  knowing  what  had  befallen  him.  Stories  of 
the  awful  instruments  of  destruction  that  the 
foreign  devils  knew  how  to  use,  sometimes 
reached  her  ears,  and  stories  of  battles  in  which 
many  were  killed,  crept  from  house  to  house. 
But  Ah  Moy  was  brave  and  kept  on  praying, 
never  once  losing  sight  of  her  high  ideals. 

In  this  way  the  summer  slipped  by  and  still 
there  were  no  signs  of  rain.  Time  and  time 
again  had  Ching  Fo  yielded  up  the  food  that 


128  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

he  had  reserved  for  use  in  time  of  need;  and 
time  and  time  again  had  he  divided  with  his 
suffering  neighbors,  until  now  he  was  con- 
vinced that  in  order  to  save  the  lives  of  his 
own  family,  he  must  flee  from  his  famine- 
stricken  home.  To  do  so,  the  open  road  was 
his  only  resort.  The  water  in  the  creek  was 
much  too  low  to  admit  of  using  a  boat ;  his 
money  was  gone  and  his  servants  had  long 
since  been  permitted  to  scatter  in  order,  if  pos- 
sible, to  save  themselves  from  starvation. 

His  son  had  returned  from  the  crusade  dis- 
couraged and  suspicious  and  everything  seemed 
to  indicate  that  there  was  still  trouble  in  store 
for  him  and  his  family.  In  the  rarefied  air 
the  mirage  shimmered  in  the  horrid  mockery 
of  water  and  the  softest  gauze  lay  fairy-like 
over  the  gaunt  wolf  of  hunger  and  despair. 
Ching  Fo,  seeing  all  this,  called  his  family  to- 
gether and  explained  to  them  that  their  only 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  129 

hope  was  to  flee  in  search  of  a  more  favored 
locality. 

"Most  of  our  neighbors  have  already  gone," 
he  said,  "and  it  is  hoping  against  hope  for  us 
to  remain  longer,  so  now  I  command  you  to 
prepare  for  the  journey.  Gather  into  bundles 
a  change  of  raiment  and  a  few  utensils  for 
cooking,  and  let  us  start  as  soon  as  possible." 

No  time  was  left  to  ponder  over  the  case, 
for  "He  who  feeds  the  ravens"  had  not  fed 
them  that  day.  It  was  a  trying  hour  for  Ching 
Fo,  for  he  saw  not  only  his  starving  family, 
but  he  felt  what  dens  and  depths  were  in 
his  own  heart.  As  he  beheld  the  scene  of 
desolation  before  him,  there  seemed  no  hope, 
no  God,  no  justice.  Neither  the  young  nor 
the  old,  neither  the  brave  nor  the  beautiful 
were  spared,  and  he  questioned  how  worthy  of 
worship  was  He  who  permitted  such  things  to 
be.  Ah  Moy  noticed  the  agony  in  her  father's 


130  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

face  and  clasped  him  in  her  arms  while,  for 
one  brief  moment,  their  tears  mingled.  But 
there  was  no  time  even  for  sorrow  and  they 
at  once  made  preparations  for  the  trip. 

Ching  Fo  clothed  himself  in  a  heavy  silk 
tunic,  with  strong  linen  trousers  and  under  the 
tunic  he  buckled  a  girdle  to  which  was  attached 
his  tobacco  pouch  and  a  pocket  for  money,  both 
of  which  were  pathetically  empty.  On  his  right 
side  in  a  leather  shield,  he  fastened  a  knife 
which  was  an  heirloom  in  the  family.  Could 
it  have  spoken  it  might  have  told  of  the  savage 
heroism  that  had  been  practiced  by  them;  a 
heroism  that  feared  not  to  spill  blood  if  occa- 
sion required  it.  Even  little  Ah  Moy  knew 
the  etiquette  of  the  Oriental  suicide  down  to 
its  minutest  details. 

Ching  Fo  drew  the  knife  from  its  case  and 
tested  its  edge,  and  as  he  did  so  there  came  into 
his  face  an  expression  of  great  firmness.  At 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  131 

this  moment  his  son,  dressed  for  the  journey, 
entered  and  took  his  place  beside  his  father; 
and  when  the  women  came  they  were  ready  for 
the  start. 

Ching  Fo.  protector  of  his  kindred  and  pre- 
server of  his  ancestral  tombs,  leading  his  family 
out  of  a  famine  stricken  district,  was  but  a 
repetition  of  his  ancestors  who  had,  in  ages 
long  since,  been  swept  into  the  bosom  of  the 
past.  No  modern  method  of  tiding  over  a 
period  of  famine,  found  favor  in  his  eyes. 
Steam  and  electricity,  he  regarded  as  innova- 
tions not  for  a  moment  to  be  considered.  With 
lowered  head,  as  one  who  sees  not  but  goes  for- 
ward only  because  he  must,  he  turned  into  the 
road  that  led  out  toward  the  old  King  Shang 
monastery. 

"We  will  make  straight  for  the  King 
Shang,"  he  said  to  his  wife,  "and  from  there 
we  may  hope  to  start  better  prepared  for  our 
journey." 


132  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"How  far  is  it  to  the  King  Shan?"  asked 
his  son. 

"At  least  ten  miles,  but  with  patience,  we 
may  reach  it  today,"  replied  the  father. 

"It  is  hard  for  the  women  with  their  bound 
feet,"  ventured  the  son,  "my  feet  are  strong 
from  having  gone  with  the  crusaders;  but. 
father,  can  mother  and  Ah  Moy  walk  so  far?" 

"It  is  hard,"  replied  his  father,  "but  it  is  a 
case  of  necessity.  Left  here,  they  would  die 
of  hunger,  or  perhaps  the  foreign  soldiers 
might  find  their  way  to  them,  in  which  case  no 
true  Chinese  woman  would  be  willing  to  live." 

"Oh,  father,  let  us  wait,  for  already  mother 
and  sister  are  far  behind,"  exclaimed  the  son, 
looking  anxiously  back. 

"We  will  go  to  yonder  wall,"  said  Ching  Fo, 
"for  just  there  I  see  an  old  bamboo  tree,  at  the 
roots  of  which  there  may  be  young  shoots.  If 
we  should  be  so  fortunate  as  to  find  some,  they 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  133 

will  relieve   us  of  hunger   and   give   us   new 
strength." 

They  soon  came  to  a  place  where  a  bamboo 
tree  was  spreading  its  sere  and  yellow  leaves 
over  a  desolate  home  and,  by  digging  into  the 
ground,  found  young  roots  which  were  tender 
and  delicious.  Ching  Fo  threw  the  bundle  from 
his  back  and  took  from  it  a  small  kettle,  into 
which  he  put  the  sprouts  and  by  the  time  the 
mother  and  daughter  came  up,  he  had  ready  a 
light  repast.  It  was  a  spare  breakfast  after  a 
long  walk,  but  it  gave  them  courage  to  go  on 
and  to  trust  Ten  Wang  to  bring  them  safely 
to  the  end  of  the  day.  After  the  breakfast,  Ah 
Moy  and  her  mother  spoke  but  little,  yet  hand 
in  hand,  they  pressed  forward,  making  a  brave 
effort  to  keep  up  with  the  men.  As  the  sun 
grew  hotter  they  suffered  terribly  with  their 
feet  but  in  their  faces  was  the  look  of  stolid 
endurance,  so  characteristic  of  the  Chinese 
woman. 


134  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Occasionally  the  little  party  fell  in  with  some 
one  going  their  way,  but  for  the  most  part  the 
country  was  deserted.  Starving  dogs  glared 
at  them  as  they  passed  and  buzzards  sat  in 
solemn  inquest  over  the  bleaching  bones  of  the 
victims  of  the  drouth.  Many  times  Ching  Fo 
and  his  son  sat  down  by  the  wayside  to  wait 
for  the  women,  and  many  times  they  fell  far 
behind.  But  the  day  passed  and  as  the  mists 
of  evening  began  to  gather  over  the  distant 
mountains,  the  old  monastery  came  in  sight. 
Ching  Fo's  trained  eye  was  the  first  to  catch  a 
glimpse  of  it,  as  it  loomed  grandly  against  a 
low  range  of  foothills. 

"Blessed  be  Buddha,"  he  exclaimed,  turning 
to  his  wife.  As  he  glanced  back,  he  saw  that 
Ah  Moy  was  pale  and  trembling  and  that  a 
tear  had  left  its  mark  in  the  dust  on  her  cheek. 
The  sight  of  the  noble  building,  however,  en- 
couraged her  and  she  made  renewed  efforts. 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  135 

In  fancy  she  saw  Quan  Yin  and  in  fancy  she 
heard  the  bells  calling  to  evening  prayer.  In 
this  sweet  attitude  of  mind  she  bore  her  suffer- 
ings until  they  all  stood  together  upon  the 
stone  steps  of  the  old  King  Shan. 

"Blessed  be  Buddha,"  again  exclaimed  the 
father,  and  all  the  family  repeated  the  sacred 
text.  When  they  had  rested  for  a  few  moments 
they  entered  the  heavily  timbered  gateway  and 
passed  on  to  an  avenue  lined  with  long  rows  of 
stone  lanterns,  which  led  to  a  small  temple  and 
thence  to  a  priests'  house.  Ching  Fo  was  sur- 
prised to  observe  that  the  saucers  for  oil  in 
the  lanterns  were  empty  and  his  hand  trem- 
bled as  he  struck  the  old  bronze  bell.  An  aged 
priest  opened  the  door  and  Ching  Fo  asked  with 
great  courtesy  whether  it  would  be  possible 
for  him  and  his  family  to  remain  within  the 
walls  for  a  few  days. 

The  priest  raised  his  hand  in  token  of  wel- 


136  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

come,  took  down  a  bundle  of  keys  from  which 
he  selected  one  and  led  the  way  back  to  the 
monastery.  As  he  opened  the  door  Ching  Fo 
was  horrified  to  see  that  the  "Merciful  Hearer 
of  Prayers"  lay  face  downward  on  the  floor, 
and  further  on  the  Dragon  King,  so  lately  car- 
ried by  the  pious  laborers  lay  broken,  with 
great  patches  of  its  silken  skin  cut  away  by 
sacrilegious  hands.  These  sights  sent  a  thrill 
of  terror  through  his  heart,  such  as  he  had 
never  before  felt.  He  turned  back  and  with  a 
gesture  of  despair  said  to  his  wife, 

"Nothing  but  desolation  is  here,"  then  turn- 
ing to  the  old  priest  he  asked  what,  in  the 
name  of  heaven,  had  caused  this  ruin. 

"The  building  has  been  looted  by  the  foreign 
devils,"  replied  the  priest,  "and  everything  of 
value  has  been  carried  off." 

"Is  there  no  rice?"  piteously  asked  the  son. 

"A    small   portion   of   rice."   answered   the 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  137 

priest,  "shall  be  yours,  but  beyond  that  our 
hands  are  empty." 

The  priest  then  returned  to  his  quarters  and 
with  his  own  hands  prepared  a  small  bowl  of 
rice  for  each  member  of  the  family.  While  he 
was  gone,  Ching  Fo  explored  a  little  further 
into  the  building  and  found  that  all  the  idols 
had  been  more  or  less  mutilated  and  that  much 
that  was  sacred  had  been  carried  off  by  the 
pillagers.  After  the  priest  had  returned  and 
they  had  eaten  their  portion  of  rice,  they  gath- 
ered a  hard  pillow  from  the  fragments  around 
them  and  lay  down  to  await  another  day.  The 
mockery  of  the  sky  continued,  and  the  sun  went 
down  in  a  wild  welter  of  color;  its  golden  rays 
crept  through  the  windows  and  tinted  the  walls 
of  the  old  monastery  with  richest  hues,  while 
the  creek  outside  lifted  up  its  voice  in  song 
and  the 
"Firefly  lovers  flew  over  the  wall, 


138  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Through  the  dim,  pathless  air,  to  a  firefly 

ball." 

But  the  beauties  of  nature  which  at  another 
time  would  have  given  Ching  Fo  and  his  family 
intense  pleasure,  were  now  lost  in  the  sadness 
of  their  thoughts.  Hour  after  hour  they  re- 
mained awake,  trying  to  grasp  the  meaning 
of  the  woes  that  had  befallen  them.  At  last 
the  children  sank  into  the  sleep  of  the  tired 
young;  but  into  Ching  Fo's  wide  open  eyes, 
there  came  forerunners  of  the  darkest  hour  he 
had  yet  seen.  Before  him  was  the  parting  of 
the  ways.  His  son,  the  protector  of  the  family 
tombs  and  the  successor  to  his  family  name, 
was  on  the  one  side,  while  on  the  other  was  Ah 
Moy,  the  idol  of  his  heart.  Between  these  two 
he  must  now  choose.  It  was  not  a  question  for 
a  Chinaman  to  long  ponder  over,  for  with  the 
money  he  might  receive  for  his  third  daughter, 
he  could  remove  his  wife  and  son  to  a  place  of 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  139 

safety ;  and  when  the  Rain  God  saw  fit  to  pour 
out  a  sufficient  quantity  of  water,  upon  his 
parched  fields,  he  could  return  to  his  home 
and  continue  the  family  worship.  He  knew  that 
in  all  places  where  famine  held  its  deadly  sway 
the  slave  dealer  was  sure  to  come  to  purchase 
the  fairest  girls,  and  he  thought,  in  the  agony 
of  his  heart,  that  Ah  Moy  ought  to  bring  a 
large  sum  of  money;  she  was  old  enough  to 
be  immediately  available  for  a  wife ;  the  danger 
of  foot-binding  was  past;  her  education  was 
properly  finished  and,  what  was  more,  she  was 
very  beautiful.  These  wrere  the  thoughts  that 
haunted  Ching  Fo  and  drove  every  possible 
chance  of  sleep  from  his  eyes.  So  he  arose  and 
went  out  into  the  moonlit  garden. 

In  the  gray  of  the  morning  his  wife  joined 
him  and  there,  beneath  the  trees  made  sacred 
by  the  worship  of  ages,  that  grand  committee 
of  two,  the  father  and  the  mother,  unfolded  to 


140  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

each  other  the  plan  by  which  they  hoped  to 
save  the  family  shrine. 

"To  sell  the  third  daughter,"  said  Ching  Fo 
to  his  wife,  "is,  indeed,  a  trial,  but  I  fear  that 
to  all  our  other  woes,  this  intolerable  one  must 
be  added.  The  straits  into  which  Ten  Wang 
has  brought  us,  compel  me  to  entertain  the 
thought." 

"I  knew  it  before  your  honorable  speech  was 
made,"  replied  his  wife,  "if  it  must  be  so,  it 
must  be  so,  and  the  details  are  left  for  you 
to  work  out.  Are  there  slave  dealers  in  this 
vicinity,"  she  asked  sadly. 

"I  presume  there  are,"  replied  her  husband, 
"they  usually  swarm  about  places  where  men 
in  financial  distress  are  apt  to  come." 

"But  what  if  Ting  Ho,  the  son  of  Sing  Lee, 
should  return?" 

"There  is  but  little  hope  of  such  an  event, 
for  during  all  the  time  that  he  has  been  gone, 


CHAPTER  SEVEN  141 

his  father  has  heard  nothing  from  him,"  re- 
plied Ching  Fo.  A  long  conversation  followed, 
during  which  neither  uttered  a  sigh  nor  shed 
a  tear,  so  bred  in  the  bone  was  the  Chinese  eti- 
quette of  concealing  the  emotions.  The  deep 
sorrow  they  were  enduring,  however,  bowed 
their  heads  and  furrowed  their  brows,  and 
when  the  sun  came  in  stately  splendor  over  the 
mountain  crest,  they  turned  their  faces  east- 
ward, hoping  that  the  deep  spiritual  enlighten- 
ment, which  comes  with  the  early  morning, 
might  make  the  poor  world  fret  seem  a  little 
less.  After  inhaling  deeply,  Ching  Fo  arose 
and  went  into  the  monastery  to  see  if,  per- 
chance, Ah  Moy's  young  heart  was  able  to  bear 
such  a  strain. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

"Fine  words  and  an  insinuating  appearance, 
are  seldom  associated  with  virtue.  The  doings 
of  heaven  have  neither  sound  nor  smell." 

— Confucius. 

With  slow  and  faltering  step  Ching  Fo  ap- 
proached his  daughter,  whom  he  found  seated 
upon  a  bench  at  the  side  of  the  monastery. 
When  he  reached  the  spot  he  laid  his  hand 
almost  reverently  upon  her  head  and  said  with 
painful  emotion: 

"Daughter,  all  my  life  I  have  revered  the 
Gods  and  have  believed  in  the  spirits  of  my 
ancestors.  Yet,  at  this  moment,  I  can  see  but 
one  malicious  monster  ruling  the  world. 
Driven  by  his  evil  hand,  I  am  compelled  to 
say  that  whilst  thou  are  my  beloved  daughter 
and  thy  mother  and  I  bless  the  day  that  thou 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  143 

didst  enter  our  unworthy  home,  I  see  no  way 
to  tide  over  the  distress  into  which  we  have 
fallen  but  to  sell  thee  to  a  slave  dealer.  I  have 
not  the  right  to  cut  off  my  family  line  while  a 
female  child  can  be  made  use  of  to  bridge  over 
the  dilemma.  The  question  that  confronts  me 
now  is  that  of  saving  the  heir  to  the  ancestral 
line.  There  are  three  things  of  which  a  su- 
perior man  stands  in  awe;  first,  he  stands  in 
awe  of  the  ordinances  of  heaven;  second,  he 
stands  in  awe  of  the  words  of  the  sages ;  third, 
he  stands  in  awe  of  the  customs  of  his  ances- 
tors. All  these  things  compel  me  to  protect 
my  family  shrine.  To  do  so.  thy  brother  must 
receive  first  consideration.  It  is  to  him  that 
we  look  for  the  preservation  of  the  family  tomb ; 
it  is  to  him  that  the  spirits  of  our  ancestors 
look  for  the  perpetuation  of  the  family  name." 
Thus  spoke  Ching  Fo  and  right  royally  did 
his  little  daughter  answer  him: 


H4  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"Father  dear,  do  not  look  so  sad!  I  know 
that,  having  been  born  a  girl,  I  am  only  a  bur- 
den in  such  a  time  as  this  and  whatever  you 
think  best  I  shall  willingly  accede  to.  It  is 
ordained  by  the  Gods  that  women  shall  be 
slaves  and  I  may  as  well  obey  a  master  as  to 
obey  the  mother-in-law  to  whom  I  should  have 
owed  my  services  had  I  been  married  to  Ting 
Ho.  Do  not  worry  about  me  for  I  shall  go 
willingly  into  the  slave  dealer's  hands,  if  you 
so  decide.  I  know  that  you  can  get  money 
enough  for  me  to  care  for  mother  and  brother 
until  the  rain  comes  and  then  you  can  go  back 
to  the  old  home  and  the  old  life." 

The  courageous  spirit  of  his  daughter  saved 
Ching  Fo  much  of  the  sting  which  the  inter- 
view would  otherwise  have  given  him.  He  took 
her  hand  and  together  they  went  to  the  mother 
who  was  waiting  beneath  the  tree.  For  one  sad 
hour  all  three  sat  with  faces  to  the  east,  endur- 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  145 

ing  bravely  the  sorrow  that  had  come  to  them. 
In  the  still  air  they  could  hear  voices  outside 
the  wall  and  they  could  see  the  top  of  a  sail 
which  they  knew  must  belong  to  some  house- 
boat ;  but  they  were  too  much  absorbed  in  their 
own  affairs  to  wish  to  see  strangers',  so  they 
went  quietly  back  into  the  monastery  and  com- 
menced to  fold  the  garments  they  had  worn 
during  the  night.  When  they  had  finished  Ah 
Moy  said,  pointing  to  the  idols: 

"Father  dear,  may  we  not  go  around  the 
room  and  repair  some  of  the  damage  that  has 
been  done  to  the  images,  before  we  go?" 

"Yes,"  replied  Ching  Fo,  "it  is  proper  to  do 
what  you  can  to  that  end.  The  damage  done 
by  a  barbarian  may  be  repaired  by  a  woman's 
hand,  but  the  barbarian  is  an  object  of  con- 
tempt." 

"Then  let  us  raise  up  Quan  Yin  and  put  her 
in  her  place,"  said  Ah  Moy.  The  two  women 


146  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

lifted  the  Goddess  back  and  then  went  to  the 
Virgin  Mother.  The  lily  was  still  in  hei 
hand,  but  her  face  was  turned  to  the  wall  and 
the  child,  which  had  lain  on  her  breast,  had 
been  placed  beside  the  God  of  War.  Ah  Moy 
could  not  restrain  her  tears. 

"Tell  me,  oh  tell  me,  dear  mother,"  she  said, 
"why  it  is  that  the  foreign  people  treat  our 
sacred  symbols  with  contempt." 

"I  cannot  answer,  my  daughter,  all  we  can 
do  is  to  bring  the  infant  back  and  stand  it  be- 
side its  mother." 

They  turned  the  face  of  the  Virgin  around 
and  carried  back  the  child  and  were  proceed- 
ing to  the  God  of  a  Thousand  Hands,  when 
they  heard  the  voice  of  Ching  Fo  calling  them 
and  saying: 

"We  must  go  on  now,  for  it  will  be  much 
easier  if  we  walk  before  the  heat  of  the  day." 

Thus  commanded  the  women  left  the  broken 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  147 

idols  and  prepared  to  go.  The  son,  although 
he  had  lost  some  of  the  buoyancy  of  the  day 
before,  took  his  place  beside  the  father  and  all 
was  ready  for  the  start  when,  suddenly,  a 
shadow  darkened  the  doorway  and  caused  them 
all  to  turn  in  that  direction.  There  they  saw  a 
Chinaman,  sleek,  well  fed,  and  wearing  the 
regulation  suit  of  black  linen,  that  proclaimed 
him  to  be  of  the  merchant  class,  approaching 
them.  He  shook  his  own  hands  as  he  advanced 
and  bowed  low  and  ceremoniously. 

"Like  yourself,  honored  sir,"  he  said,  "I  am 
a  visitor  to  this  noble  temple,"  but  as  he  spoke 
he  cast  a  searching  glance  at  Ah  Moy,  which 
so  angered  Ching  Fo,  that  he  replied  with 
freezing  politeness, 

"The  temple  is  before  you,  sir,"  and  imme- 
diately started  to  take  up  the  day's  journey. 
Seeing  that  the  little  party  intended  no  further 
conversation,  the  newcomer,  still  looking  at  Ah 
Moy,  said, 


14S  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTEK 

''Honored  sir,  you  seem  weary  and  travel 
stained.  May  I  ask  from  whence  you  came  and 
whither  you  go?" 

"We  have  come  from  the  Tien  Dong  and 
we  go  to  the  Shan  Tung  province/'  was  Ching 
Fo's  terse  reply. 

"Your  locality  has  suffered  much,"  said  the 
stranger,  "our  country  is  beloved  of  the  Gods, 
if  we  may  believe  that  old  saw  which  says, 
'the  Gods  persecute  whom  they  love'." 

"The  Gods,"  replied  Ching  Fo,  "are  far  be- 
yond us.  All  we  can  do  is  to  follow  the  line 
of  duty  and  leave  events  with  heaven." 

"Yes,  yes,"  assented  the  stranger.  "It  is 
futile  to  attempt  to  pacify  the  Gods.  It  is, 
however,  very  sad  to  see  the  ruin  that  sac- 
rilegious hands  have  wrought  in  this  old 
monastery." 

"Yes,  oh  yes,"  replied  Ching  Fo  warmly,  "it 
appears  that  the  day  has  not  yet  come  for  the 


CHAPTER  BIGHT  149 

brotherhood  of  man.  But  it  does  seem  that 
nations  might  abstain  from  committing  high- 
way robbery  in  adjusting  their  differences." 

"Yes,"  agreed  the  stranger,  "the  despoiling 
of  this  place  was  entirely  unnecessary  and  was 
carried  out  with  the  savagery  of  the  foreigner." 

"How  so?"  asked  Ching  Fo,  relaxing  his 
cold  demeanor  and  showing  a  keen  interest  in 
what  the  stranger  had  to  say. 

"I  chanced  to  be  near  here  and  in  a  measure, 
to  be  a  witness  of  the  fiendish  work.  My  house- 
boat was  moored  just  below  in  the  creek,  when 
a  party  of  foreigners  surrounded  me  and  de- 
manded any  information  I  might  have  con- 
cerning the  treasure  in  the  building." 

"Ah,  indeed!"  exclaimed  Ching  Fo,  "then 
you  were  really  a  witness." 

"Yes,  as  I  said,  chancing  to  speak  a  little 
'pidgin',  I  was  put  upon  for  information.  Of 
course  my  knowledge  of  English  failed  me  and 


ISO  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

I  answered  all  questions  with  'no  savee;'  but 
they  were  bent  on  mischief  and  this  is  the  re- 
sult. The  priests,"  he  went  on,  "were  power- 
less and  as  their  supply  of  food  was  limited, 
they  fled  to  the  temple  of  Ko  Shin." 

"It  is  deplorable,"  said  Ching  Fo,  and  again 
attempted  to  throw  the  bundle  containing  the 
family  possessions  over  his  shoulder. 

"Are  you  properly  equipped  for  your  long 
walk,"  asked  the  stranger.  "I  have  provisions 
and  to  spare  in  my  boat.  They  are  yours,  if 
you  will  accept  them." 

At  this  Ching  Fo  softened  his  voice  a  little 
and  asked,  "To  whom  am  T  indebted  for  this 
kindness?" 

"I  am  Quong  Lung,"  replied  the  stranger, 
"and  it  gives  me  pleasure  to  serve  so  noble  a 
brother." 

The  faces  of  the  little  party  brightened,  for 
although  they  courted  hardship  and  took  a  keen 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  151 

delight  in  testing  their  powers  of  endurance, 
their  sufferings  had  already  gone  to  a  point 
where  the  ancient  spirit  threatened  to  give  way. 
Quong  Lung,  seeing  that  they  were  will- 
ing to  accept  his  proffered  food,  stepped  to 
the  door  and  clapped  his  hands  in  signal  for  a 
servant  to  come  from  the  boat.  In  a  few  mo- 
ments two  coolies  presented  themselves  and 
their  master  instructed  them  to  bring  food. 
The  coolies  hastened  back  to  the  boat  and  soon 
returned  with  bountiful  supplies.  By  this  time 
Ching  Fo  suspected  that  his  benefactor  was  a 
slave  dealer  who  had  followed  him  for  the  pur- 
pose of  taking  advantage  of  his  trouble  and  he 
hated  him  and  all  his  kith  and  kin  of  trades- 
people. An  old  poem  came  to  his  mind  and 
he  repeated  it  almost  audibly, 

"What  is  the  good  man  and  the  wise? 
Oft-times  a  pearl  which  none  doth  prize, 
Or  jewel  rare,  which  men  account, 
A  common  pebble  and  despise. 


152  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Set  forth  upon  the  world's  bazar, 

It  mildly  gleams;  but  no  one  buys." 

As  he  turned  back  and  saw  the  wasted  figures 
of  his  wife  and  children,  he  threw  aside  his 
scruples  and  squatted  with  them  before  a  large 
bowl  of  rice. 

This  was  what  Quong  Lung  had  hoped  for, 
since  he  was  a  shrewd  enough  judge  of  human 
nature  to  know  that  business  progresses  better 
on  a  full  stomach  than  on  an  empty  one.  He 
had  the  Chinaman's  patience  and  the  China- 
man's devotion,  for  while  he  waited  for  the 
family  to  finish  eating,  he  loitered  among  the 
idols  and  lighted  incense  sticks  or  threw  wads 
of  paper  at  the  God  of  Good  Luck.  After  the 
meal  was  over  Ching  Fo's  tobacco  pouch  was 
filled,  for  the  first  time  in  many  weeks;  water 
chestnuts  were  brought  in  from  the  boat  and 
later,  tea  and  rice  wafers  and  sweets.  Before 
the  meal  was  finished  the  slave  dealer  joined 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  1SJ 

the  group  and  tried  to  adjust  himself  to  their 
society.  As  the  sun  crept  up  and  stood  directly 
over  the  old  cryptomeria  tree,  the  men  strolled 
out  and  sat  beneath  it.  There  the  birds  were 
singing  and  the  insects  droning  the  music  that 
the  Chinese  love,  but  in  the  shadow  beneath 
the  tree,  sat  a  shrewd  and  prosperous  merchant 
eating  out  the  heart  of  a  helpless  scholar.  With 
the  cunning  of  a  Jew,  Quong  Lung  beat  off 
the  shock  which  he  knew  would  be  given  Ching 
Fo,  if  he  boldly  opened  negotiations  for  the 
purchase  of  Ah  Moy.  He  talked  about  the 
drouth,  the  foreign  devils  and  the  chances  of 
rain ;  but  not  a  word  of  the  girl  until  the  shadow 
of  the  tree  stretched  long  toward  the  east.  At 
last  he  said  significantly, 

"Your  daughter  is  a  very  beautiful  girl.  I 
wonder  you  have  not  married  her  before  now." 

"She  has  been  betrothed  since  babyhood  to 
the  son  of  Sing  Lee,"  answered  Ching  Fo,  "but 


154  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

alas!  her  intended  husband  has  been  sacrificed 
on  the  altar  of  his  country." 

"Well,  then,  it  is  no  more  than  proper  that 
she  should  be  given  to  another,"  said  Quong 
Lung,  "I  have  much  demand  for  girls  who 
are  old  enough  to  be  married.  Is  your  daugh- 
ter's health  good?" 

"Her  health  is  excellent,"  replied  Ching  Fo, 
"my  family  have  been  subjected  to  great  hard- 
ships since  the  drouth  and  the  girl  looks  a  little 
thin ;  but  with  proper  food,  she  will  soon  regain 
her  flesh." 

"Yes,  probably  so,"  assented  Quong  Lung, 
"but  you  know  that  some  girls  grow  ill  and 
faded  when  taken  away  from  their  parents.  All 
things  combine  to  make  investment  in  girls 
uncertain.  If  I  could  be  sure  of  finding  a  pur- 
chaser for  her  very  soon,  I  should  be  glad  to 
offer  you  a  liberal  price  but,  taking  everything 
into  consideration,  I  cannot  afford  to  pay  more 
than  five  hundred  taels  for  her." 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  155 

"She  is  no  coolie,"  exclaimed  the  father  an- 
grily, "that  is  no  more  than  the  price  of  a  com- 
mon coolie.  This  is  the  daughter  of  Ching  Fo 
whose  name  is  known  and  honored  throughout 
the  province.  It  is  only  because  the  iron  hand 
of  poverty  is  upon  me,  that  I  consider  her  sale 
at  any  price.  I  have  but  one  son,  kind  sir,  and 
it  is  my  duty  to  protect  him  at  whatever  cost. 
You  certainly  are  aware  that  such  girls  as  my 
Ah  Moy  are  only  to  be  purchased  in  times  of 
distress." 

Quong  Lung,  however,  was  callous  to  the 
matter  of  sentiment.  He  wanted  to  buy,  but 
at  the  lowest  possible  price.  So  he  replied  very 
carelessly, 

"Oh  very  well,  there  are  many  girls  for  sale 
and  my  experience  is  that  they  are  usually  only 
consumers  of  rice." 

Every  word  of  this  haggling  about  the  price 
was  iron  driven  into  the  soul  of  Ching  Fo.  He 


1S6  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

knew  that  the  color  would  come  back  to  the 
cheek  of  Ah  Moy  as  soon  as  she  had  plenty  of 
food  and  that,  under  favorable  circumstances, 
she  was  very  beautiful.  The  designs  which 
Quong  Lung  had  upon  him  were  so  apparent 
that  he  trembled  in  rage. 

"The  mind  of  the  superior  man  is  conversant 
with  righteousness,"  he  quoted  to  himself,  "but 
the  mind  of  the  mean  man  is  conversant  with 
gain."  He  wondered  if  righteousness  was  to 
be  desired  at  such  a  frightful  cost,  and  he  won- 
dered if  it  would  not  be  better  to  exercise  his 
legal  perogative  and  slay  the  two  women,  and 
thus  disencumbered  make  his  way  with  his  son 
to  a  place  of  safety.  So  the  day  wore  on  and  at 
sunset  he  had  arrived  at  no  definite  conclusion. 

It  was  dark  when  Ching  Fo,  still  brooding 
over  the  problem,  returned  to  the  monastery. 
His  wife  and  daughter  came  and  sat  beside 
him  in  silence  and  the  stars  were  twinkling  ere 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  157 

they  lay  down  upon  the  hard  floor  to  spend 
another  night.  But  when  a  new  day  formed 
in  the  east,  Ching  Fo  faced  it  with  the  courage 
of  a  man  who  has  gone  through  the  deep  waters 
and  found  a  landing  place  on  the  other  side. 
He  arose,  walked  firmly  to  the  bank  of  the 
creek,  and  motioned  Quong  Lung  to  his  side. 

"It  is  useless  to  prolong  the  agony,"  said 
he,  "neither  my  family  nor  myself  can  see  any 
way  of  escape  and  it  were  better  that  we  close 
the  bargain." 

Thus  ended  the  parley  and  thus  the  daughter 
of  Ching  Fo  became  the  property  of  Quong 
Lung.  The  contract  was  drawn  up  by  the  slave 
dealer  and  so  ingeniously  worded  that  Ching 
Fo  did  not  notice  at  first  the  omission  of  the 
usual  clause  which  provides  that  the  slave  shall 
not  be  used  for  immoral  purposes.  When  he 
saw  the  defect  his  blood  boiled  anew,  but  he 
did  not  dare  expostulate,  lest  Quong  Lung 


158  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

should  take  advantage  and  reduce  the  price, 
which  was  barely  sufficient  to  enable  him  to 
take  his  family  out  of  the  danger  of  starvation. 
Under  these  circumstances,  he  signed  the  docu- 
ment and  returned  to  the  monastery  to  inform 
the  women  and  to  say  a  last  word  to  his  third 
daughter,  from  whom  he  now  expected  to  part 
forever.  Both  women  knew  by  the  expression 
on  his  face  that  the  moment  had  come  and  both 
struggled  bravely  with  their  emotions.  Ching 
Fo's  step  as  he  advanced  to  take  Ah  Mby  by 
the  hand  and  lead  her  to  the  door  where  Quong 
Lung  was  waiting  to  receive  her,  was  that  of 
a  man  grown  old  in  a  single  night. 

"My  child,"  said  he,  "you  must  go  with 
Quong  Lung  and  obey  him  and  be  as  good  a 
slave  as  you  have  been  a  daughter.  The  most 
painful  part  of  the  whole  matter  is,  that  I  have 
not  been  able  to  secure  the  usual  clause  in  the 
contract  of  sale  to  protect  you  from  dishonor. 


CHAPTER  EIGHT  159 

It  is  customary  for  the  Chinese  slave  dealer  to 
sell  his  young  women  for  wives  and  it  is  most 
likely  that  some  good  Chinaman  will  buy  you 
to  raise  sons  to  his  ancestral  line.  But,  daugh- 
ter, there  is  a  possibility  that  it  may  not  be  so, 
and  if  it  comes  to  a  choice  between  shame  and 
death — you  must  choose  only  death."  Saying 
this,  he  took  from  his  girdle  the  knife  which 
he  so  valued  as  a  family  possession  and  handed 
it  to  her.  Ah  Moy  understood  and  without 
hesitancy  took  the  knife  and  hid  it  in  her  sleeve. 
Then  she  followed  her  father  to  the  door  where 
Quong  Lung,  with  the  expression  of  the  man 
who  has  made  a  good  bargain,  received  her. 
Both  parents  turned  their  faces  to  the  wall  as 
she  was  led  down  the  steps. 

Ah  Moy  bore  up  bravely  until  she  stepped 
upon  the  plank  which  reached  from  the  bank 
to  the  boat,  but  then  overwhelming  sorrow 
swept  over  her  and  she  broke  into  a  fit  of 
weeping. 


160  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"It  is  another  cry-baby  that  he  has  bought," 
grumbled  one  of  the  oarsman,  casting  a  glance 
at  the  distracted  child.  But  Quong  Lung  spoke 
to  her  kindly,  saying, 

"There  now,  do  not  cry,  little  one,  perhaps 
I  shall  sell  you  to  a  rich  mandarin,  who  will 
give  you  plenty  of  clothes  and  make  you  a 
great  lady.  You  know,  do  you  not,  that  the 
empress  was  once  sold  for  a  slave  and  that  it 
was  because  of  her  good  conduct  that  she  was 
adopted  by  a  high  official  and  finally  became  the 
handmaiden  of  the  emperor." 

But  the  third  daughter  of  Ching  Fo  was  too 
unhappy  to  be  elated  by  the  story.  To  her  ex- 
cited imagination  Quong  Lung  looked  as  piti- 
less as  did  the  God  of  War  when  she  took  the 
stone  infant  from  him  to  restore  it  to  its  mother. 
But  she  soon  recovered  herself  and  true  to  her 
Asiatic  training,  sat  down  and  waited  patiently 
for  whatsoever  might  be  the  next  step  in  her 
new  life. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"As  to  the  way  in  which  men  gather  riches, 
honor  and  advancement,  there  are  but  few 
whose  wives  and  concubines  are  not  ashamed 
of  them  and  weep  together  on  account  of  them. 

— Chinese  Classic. 

The  house  boat  of  Quong  Lung  was  a  good 
one  although  small,  made  small  on  purpose  that 
it  might  be  available  on  creeks  when  the  water 
was  low;  for  it  was  when  the  water  was  low 
and  drouth  was  abroad  in  the  land  that  he 
reaped  his  richest  harvest.  It  was  built  after 
the  fashion  of  a  thousand  years  ago  and  was 
itself  moss  grown  with  age.  Over  the  center 
a  canvas  was  stretched  on  ribs  of  bamboo  and 
high  above,  like  the  wing  of  a  bird,  was  a  sail 
of  enormous  size.  At  the  stern  of  the  boat  was 
a  great  bent-handled  sculling  oar,  which  was 
manipulated  by  coolies,  stripped  to  the  waist. 


162  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

On  occasions,  however,  when  the  water  was 
low,  the  whole  crew  jumped  overboard  and 
pulled  like  horses.  It  was  made  to  live  in,  this 
land-and- water  caravansary ;  for  its  owner  was 
a  man  whose  main  business  in  life  was  to  live. 
There  were  comfortable  beds  and  well-filled 
cupboards,  tobacco,  opium,  and  bottles  with 
foreign  labels  upon  them,  for  he  had  lived  in 
San  Francisco.  On  a  little  shelf  against  the 
side  of  the  room  was  an  image  of  the  River 
God,  in  front  of  which  stood  a  bowl  of  ashes, 
showing  that  incense  had  been  burned  there. 
Beside  the  fragrant  incense  there  were  other 
smells — some  of  which  reeked  to  heaven ;  odor's 
of  bilge  water,  dried  fish  and  sea  cabbage  min- 
gled with  the  black  smoke ;  the  latter,  however, 
was  reserved  for  occasions  when  the  boat  was 
stuck  fast  in  the  mud,  for  Quong  Lung  never 
permitted  pleasure  to  interfere  with  business. 
On  the  bow  of  the  boat  was  painted  an  enor- 


CHAPTER  NINE  163 

mous  eye,  the  eye  of  the  Water  Dragon,  which 
has  occupied  a  place  on  Chinese  boats  since  the 
memory  of  man  runneth  not  to  the  contrary. 
What  it  meant,  no  one  knew ;  but  it  was  a  good 
luck  sign  and  Quong  Lung  thought  it  a  safe 
plan  to  have  the  good  luck  signs  wherever  they 
belonged.  For  the  Three-toed  Dragon  he  kept 
a  cup  of  tea  and  a  bronze  gong,  each  clang  of 
which  was  a  signal  for  an  offering  and  a 
prayer. 

The  foreman  differed  not  from  the  crew  ex- 
cept that  he  wore  a  shirt  and  stood  on  top  of 
the  bamboo  frame,  when  the  boat  was  in  mo- 
tion, and  uttered  such  words  as  more  civilized 
men  utter  to  horses  when  the  wagon  is  stuck  in 
the  mud.  He  also  shouted  warnings  to  every- 
body in  sight: 

"Don't  you  see  this  fine  boat,  all  you  little 
mud-scrapers?  Get  to  one  side,  or  I  will  run 
you  down.  Hey  there!  thou  son  of  a  louse, 


164  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

clear  the  way/'  etc.  His  ability  to  intimidate 
the  small  fry  constituted  his  chief  value  as  an 
overseer,  for  nothing  short  of  it  could  arouse 
the  multitude  that  swarmed  upon  the  water. 
After  his  work  was  done,  however,  this  inde- 
fatigable foreman  squatted,  with  the  rest  of 
the  crew,  around  a  bowl  of  fish  and  rice. 
Quong  Lung  commanded  better  things — pork 
and  lily  bulbs  and  Sam-shu. 

Ah  Moy  soon  got  over  her  fright  and  was 
timidly  preparing  to  eat  the  food  which  the 
cook  had  sent  her  when,  to  her  surprise,  another 
girl  rolled  out  of  the  bunk  and  came  and  sat 
down  by  her  side.  She  was  a  pretty  girl,  mod- 
est and  silent,  but  with  eyes  that  looked  straight 
into  the  faces  of  men.  This  peculiarity  Ah  Moy 
had  never  seen  before  in  any  woman  and  she 
at  once  concluded  that  the  girl  was  not  all 
Chinese.  Another  sign  of  foreign  blood  in  this 
strange  girl  was  the  softness  and  the  tendency 


CHAPTER  NINE  165" 

to  curl  in  her  blue  black  hair.  Ah  Moy,  in  her 
secluded  life,  had  met  only  girts  in  her  own 
rank  and  their  repose  and  studied  passionless- 
ness  were  in  sharp  contrast  with  the  nervous- 
ness and  restlessness  of  this  girl  by  her  side. 

It  was  a  sad  awakening  for  Ah  Moy  to  find 
herself  in  comradeship  with  one  who  bore  none 
of  the  marks  of  the  society  to  which  she  was 
accustomed,  and  at  first  she  felt  a  strange  re- 
luctance about  accepting  the  situation.  Hap- 
pily, however,  the  two  spoke  the  same  dialect, 
which  fact  made  it  impossible  for  them  to  go 
on  together  without  such  friendship  as  springs 
from  mutual  sorrow.  Ah  Moy  felt  for  her 
new  acquaintance  great  pity  and  tried  to  allay 
her  fears,  which  were  greatly  exaggerated. 
After  a  few  days  the  girl  confided  to  her  that 
her  name  was  Wing  and  that  her  father  was 
an  American.  During  a  famine  her  mother 
had  been  sold  for  money  to  keep  the  rest  of  her 


166  THE  THIKD  DAUGHTER 

family  alive,  and  to  tide  over  a  period  when 
wives  were  scarce,  the  American  had  bought 
her  and  installed  her  as  mistress  of  his  house. 
She  had  served  him  faithfully,  stood  between 
him  and  the  extortions  of  her  own  people  and 
borne  him  a  daughter.  Wing  remembered  her 
father,  for  he  had  been  kind  and  liberal  so 
long  as  he  had  need  of  her  mother.  But  when 
another  wife  came  in  a  great  ship  from  San 
Francisco,  she  carried  him  off  to  a  fine  house 
on  a  fashionable  street  and  they  saw  him  no 
more.  Her  mother  had  found  her  way  back  to 
the  parental  roof,  but  no  one  wanted  the  half- 
breed  girl,  so  she  was  given  to  an  old  woman 
who  raised  her  as  a  servant.  She  was  deeply 
attached  to  her  mistress,  but  when  the  drouth 
came  there  was  scarcity  of  food  and  Quong 
Lung  had  bought  the  girl  for  a  trifle.  All  this 
pitiful  story  Wing  told  between  hysterical 
bursts  of  weeping. 


CHAPTER  NINE  167 

Her  manner  astonished  Ah  Moy  even  more 
than  the  story.  But  she  soothed  her  and 
combed  the  tangles  out  of  her  unkempt  hair 
and  told  her  about  Kali,  the  mother  who  tears 
the  hearts  of  her  children  only  to  prepare  them 
for  her  blessing.  (Kali  is  a  hideous  blue  idol 
who  stands  with  a  drawn  sword  in  her  hand 
while,  with  her  feet  she  tramples  upon  her 
children ;  but  she  represents  to  the  Asiatic  mind 
the  wonderful  force  that  punishes  in  order  to 
save.) 

To  Ah  Moy  the  vague  unfolded  romance 
which  lurked  in  Wing's  conversation  was  very 
puzzling — always  a  lover  or  some  grand  knight 
coming  to  her  rescue,  always  power  and  riches 
in  store  for  her  and  always  the  thought  of  the 
opposite  sex.  Quong  Lung  noticed  it  and  said 
to  himself,  "Wing  is  a  typical  Eurasian,  a 
child  of  lust  with  the  good  burned  out  of  her. 
Physically  she  is  weakened  and  passionally  she 
is  overdeveloped." 


168  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Ah  Moy  was  distressed  at  the  dislike  which 
Quong  Lung  expressed  for  the  poor  girl  and 
tried  to  protect  her,  but  she  soon  found  that 
Wing's  heart  was  a  sepulcher  haunted  by 
phantoms  of  which  a  Chinese  girl  could  con- 
ceive only  in  the  vaguest  way. 

"Tell  me,  dear  Wing,"  said  Ah  Moy  one  day, 
"why  you  talk  so  much  about  men  and  money?" 

"Oh,"  replied  Wing,  "is  it  not  the  way  with 
fine  people  to  have  riches  and  lovers?" 

"I  think  not,"  returned  Ah  Moy,  "these  are 
strange  subjects  which  I  cannot  understand. 
Marriage  seems  to  me  to  be  a  duty  for  the  per- 
formance of  which  the  parents  will  make  ar- 
rangements in  due  time,  and  any  love  not  sanc- 
tioned by  their  wish  or  any  love  in  which  the 
mother-in-law  is  not  entitled  to  the  services  of 
the  daughter-in-law,  is  to  me  a  puzzling 
enigma." 

"Then,"   piteously  said  Wing,  "it  must  be 


CHAPTER  NINE  16? 

the  foreign  part  of  me  that  thinks  wrong.  That 
is  what  my  mother  used  to  say." 

To  Ah  Moy  the  subject  of  heredity  was  a 
sealed  book,  but  she  was  conscious  that  between 
herself  and  Wing  was  an  impassable  gulf  that 
grew  wider  as  they  ate  and  drank  and  slept 
together.  This  caused  her  deep  sorrow,  for  the 
circumstances  under  which  they  were  living 
made  her  feel  a  strong  desire  to  be  of  service 
to  her  slave  girl  companion.  How  to  accom- 
plish this,  however,  was  a  problem  that  Ah 
Moy's  young  mind  had  no  way  of  solving. 

Wing  felt  the  cloud  that  hung  over  her  and 
made  pathetic  efforts  to  overcome  the  prejudice 
that  she  knew  Ah  Moy  felt  and,  in  many  ways, 
she  improved  under  the  gentle  tutorship  of  her 
self-appointed  teacher,  but 

"Bred  in  the  shade  of  a  hedgerows'  bloom 

By  an  idle  one's  caprice," 
she  was  burdened  with  impulses  that  swayed 


170  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

her  even  as  the  wind  sways  a  young  and  tender 
plant.  Quong  Lung  had  owned  many  a  half- 
breed  girl  and  he  understood  the  handicap  un- 
der which  she  labored;  but  he  had  bought  her 
for  a  mere  song  and  expected  to  sell  her  to  the 
flower  boat  folk  as  soon  as  he  reached  the 
market 

The  boat  had  now  worried  through  the  shal- 
low waters  of  the  creek  and  was  in  a  river  with 
a  strong  current  to  the  south.  A  few  days  more 
would  bring  them  to  the  grand  canal,  after 
which  there  was  a  direct  line  to  Shanghai, 
where  Quong  Lung  hoped  to  dispose  of  his 
cargo  and  then  return  to  the  famine  district 
for  more. 

Wind  and  weather  favored;  the  girls  were 
well  fed  and  everything  about  them  a  miracle 
of  beauty,  and  except  for  an  occasional  pang 
when  they  thought  about  home,  they  were 
quite  happy.  At  times  the  boat  lay  in  shadowy 


CHAPTER  NINE  171 

depths  with  fish  darting  beneath  and  sometimes 
strange  water-fowl  arose  with  a  whirr  of 
wings,  only  to  drop  down  again  when  the  first 
alarm  had  subsided.  Along  the  banks  were 
huddled  houses  with  no  visible  way  of  ap- 
proach. Tall  bamboos  hung  over  broken  walls 
while,  higher  up,  crooked  paths  led  to  shrines. 
In  other  places  acres  and  acres  of  ducks  covered 
the  water  while,  sitting  idly  upon  the  bank,  the 
Chinese  husbandman  waited  for  them  to  dive 
for  fish  and  moss.  Sometimes  as  the  house- 
boat came  plowing  into  the  flock,  a  shrill  whistle 
from  their  owner  sent  the  ducks  scrambling 
onto  a  large  raft  nearby  and  they  went  sailing 
out  of  sight. 

The  next  hour  perhaps  they  saw  boat-loads 
of  coffined  dead  being  carried  to  their  ancestral 
tombs.  Accompanying  each  party  were  hired 
mourners,  music  and  priests  who  dabbled  their 
yellow  robes  in  the  mud. 


172  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Upon  one  occasion  a  fleet  of  tiny  straw  boats 
covered  the  water. 

"I  must  tell  you  about  this  ceremony,"  said 
Quong  Lung  as  they  watched  the  little  boats 
float  by. 

"Oh  do,"  exclaimed  both  girls,  "for  this  is 
the  most  beautiful  funeral  we  have  yet  seen." 

"Well  then,"  replied  Quong  Lung,  "Hong 
Fang,  who  gives  this  celebration  in  honor  of  his 
mother,  is  a  man  of  great  wealth,  who  has 
become  so  imbued  with  religious  ideas  that 
he  can  remember  his  former  incarnations.  He 
has  also  devoted  so  much  time  to  spiritual  at- 
tainment that  he  is  able  to  see  the  spirit  of  his 
mother  who  has  been  dead  for  many  years. 
Often  he  sits  alone  in  the  dusk  of  the  evening 
and  lights  the  spirit  recalling  incense  and 
slowly  her  face  takes  shape  and  hovers  in  the 
smoke,  but  the  time  has  now  come  when  her 
spirit  must  go  to  another  sphere  and  she  will 


CHAPTER  NINE  173 

no  longer  be  able  to  command  the  forces  by 
which  she  materializes;  so  he  gives  her  this 
grand  celebration,  known  throughout  China 
as  the  'Ceremony  of  Farewell'." 

"Oh,"  said  Ah  Moy,  "I  have  often  heard  my 
father  speak  of  this  festival  and  call  it  the 
most  beautiful  one  known  to  China.  Is  there 
not  a  written  message  in  each  little  boat?" 

"Yes,  in  each  little  boat  there  is  a  scrap  of 
paper  folded  with  ceremonious  precision,  upon 
which  is  written  a  message  of  farewell,"  say- 
ing this,  Quong  Lung  reached  out  with  a  bam- 
boo pole  and  hoked  up  one  of  the  tiny  craft  for 
the  girls  to  examine.  They  were  greatly  in- 
terested and  unfolded  the  poem  which  was 
addressed  to  the  "Honorable  Feng  Tu,  emperor 
of  the  dead."  Inside  the  paper  was  written, 
"On  behalf  of  my  mother,  greeting  and  much 
joy."  Ah  Moy  as  soon  as  she  had  read  it 
creased  it  back  into  the  orisrinal  folds  and  asked 


174  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Quong  Lung  to  set  it  afloat,  saying  in  gentle 
tones, 

"It  might  grieve  the  spirit  mother  to  lose 
even  this  one." 

For  hours  the  little  boats  covered  the  water 
with  their  twinkling  lights,  but  by  morning 
they  had  all  drifted  away  and  instead  of  a 
funeral  service  the  girls  saw  numbers  of  fishing 
boats  upon  which  were  rows  of  cormorants 
solemnly  looking  into  the  water. 

"Only  see  the  cruel  iron  rings  around  their 
necks,"  exclaimed  Ah  Moy,  as  the  birds  twisted 
their  heads  in  an  effort  to  throw  off  the  burden. 

"Those  are  to  keep  them  from  swallowing 
the  fish,"  explained  Quong  Lung,  "there  would 
be  no  profit  in  keeping  them  if  they  did  not 
give  up  what  they  catch." 

"I  should  not  wish  to  torture  the  poor  birds," 
said  Ah  Moy,  "for  the  sake  of  making  money." 

"Oh,  the  birds  do  not  understand.     As  soon 


CHAPTER  NINE  175 

as  they  give  up  one  fish,  they  go  down  for  an- 
other and  after  they  have  worked  all  day  they 
are  taken  off  and  fed." 

But  this  explanation  did  not  satisfy  Ah  Moy, 
who  looked  at  him  with  such  a  perplexed  ex- 
pression that  he  said, 

"You  are  not  accustomed  to  the  ways  of  the 
world,  little  one." 

"No,"  replied  Ah  Moy,  "I  am  accustomed 
only  to  the  ways  of  my  father." 

But  this  small  sally  changed  into  a  smile  as 
she  saw  one  of  the  cormorants  break  his  chain 
and  fly,  with  a  wild  scream,  to  a  beetling  crag. 

Two  days  more  and  the  boat  anchored  at  the 
foot  of  a  flight  of  long  stone  steps  which  led 
up  to  the  Azure  Pagoda  where  the  one  hundred 
and  eight  fires  were  lighted  for  the  purpose  of 
burning  out  the  one  hundred  and  eight  foolish 
desires  which  afflict  the  children  of  men.  As 
Quong  Lung's  cook  felt  the  need  of  prostrating 


176  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

himself  before  the  idols  and  leaving  a  small 
offering,  the  boat  came  to  a  standstill.  What 
the  one  hundred  and  eight  foolish  desires  were, 
of  which  he  wished  to  purge  himself,  was  not 
very  apparent  since  his  clothing  consisted  only 
of  a  pair  of  trousers  and  his  food  of  fish  and 
rice.  Yet  he  religiously  placed  a  copper  coin 
in  his  ear  and  waded  through  the  mud  to  the 
lion  guarded  steps. 

All  the  way  up  were  pretty,  patient  mothers, 
carrying  their  babes  to  be  purged  of  foolish  de- 
sires; but  as  the  cook  approached  the  sacred 
landing  an  outstander  informed  him  that  none 
were  permitted  to  enter  without  proper  cloth- 
ing. Nothing  daunted  the  religious  cook  re- 
turned to  the  boat  and  happily  was  able  to 
borrow  the  foreman's  hat  and  shirt,  and  thus 
equipped  entered  the  chamber  of  prayer.  After 
prostrating  himself  three  times  before  an  image 
and  making  all  the  genuflections  required  by 


CHAPTER  NINE  177 

etiquette,  he  repaired  to  the  Hall  of  Abstinence 
and  thence  to  the  shrine  of  the  God  of  the 
Aching  Tooth;  not  that  he  had  toothache,  but 
since  he  was  there,  he  would  appease  the  God 
lest  He  send  that  painful  malady  upon  him. 
(It  is  said  that  in  one  of  the  incarnations  of 
this  God  he  suffered  so  much  with  the  toothache 
that  he  tore  off  his  jaw  and  since  that  time 
has  had  power  over  the  ailment. ) 

It  was  before  this  idol  without  a  jaw  that 
the  pious  cook  met  some  other  boatmen,  who 
invited  him  to  a  game  of  fan-tan  behind  the 
temple.  The  game  was  followed  by  the  black 
smoke  and  in  the  wee  small  hours  of  the  night, 
the  cook  found  himself  so  much  in  debt  that 
he  was  obliged  to  pawn  the  foreman's  shirt 
and  hat  and  return  to  the  boat  with  only  his 
trousers.  This  arrangement  was  not  satis- 
factory, either  to  the  foreman  or  to  Quong 
Lung,  so  the  latter  gave  the  cook  a  beating, 


178  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

after  which  he  resumed  his  work  in  the  spirit 
of  a  man  who  has  enjoyed  a  holiday. 

Among  the  boats  that  came  to  a  standstill 
before  the  temple  was  one  in  no  wise  like  the 
ordinary  Chinese  river  boat.  Its  little  deck 
was  brightened  by  an  Oriental  rug;  its  wood- 
work was  newly  painted;  and  from  its  mast 
there  floated  a  clean  white  flag  upon  which  was 
sewn  a  cross  in  contrasting  color.  An  awning 
gave  the  floor  a  look  of  cool  comfort  while, 
sitting  idly  beneath  it,  in  an  easy  chair,  was 
a  young  man  of  about  twenty-five  years.  His 
figure  was  slightly  bent  and  his  face  pale,  but 
his  bearing  indicated  resolve  and  achievement 
beyond  the  common. 

This  was  Henry  Ashman,  a  young  mission- 
ary, who  could  not  remember  the  time  when 
he  had  not  looked  forward  to  the  ministry  as 
his  life  work.  His  father,  the  Reverend  Henry 
Ashman,  had  requested  on  his  death  bed,  that 


CHAPTER   NINE  179 

his  son  should  follow  in  his  footsteps  and  help 
to  carry  on  the  great  work  of  spreading  the 
gospel.  Believing  it  to  be  a  sacred  duty  his 
mother  had  kept  an  eye  single  to  this  one  object 
and  had  sent  her  son  to  a  theological  school, 
where  he  came  duly  into  full  membership  with 
an  orthodox  church  and  kept  the  idea  con- 
stantly before  him  that  his  father's  mantle  had 
fallen  upon  his  shoulders. 

Some  of  his  experiences  in  college  had  done 
much  to  convince  him  that  there  were  two 
sides  to  the  great  story ;  but  he  kept  bravely  on, 
strong  in  the  faith  that  he  was  divinely  ap- 
pointed to  spread  the  gospel.  Notwithstanding 
this  noble  determination,  he  had  occasionally 
been  drawn  into  indiscretion.  The  story  is 
easily  told.  There  was  a  fascination  about 
women  which  he  could  not  resist.  At  one  time 
he  had  fallen  madly  in  love  with  an  actress, 
whose  rounded  figure  carried  with  it  the  soft 


180  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

cooing  of  a  dove.  Each  evening  found  him  at 
the  theater,  painfully  anxious  about  her  and 
ready  to  commit  any  folly  that  the  witchery  of 
the  hour  might  suggest.  For  a  time  he  reveled 
in  his  passion,  but  when,  instead  of  re-opening 
her  engagement,  the  lady  suddenly  left  the  city, 
he  analyzed  the  shocks  that  had  gone  through 
him  and  concluded  that  he  had  been  under  the 
influence  of  Satan.  No  good  angel  came  to 
him  at  this  critical  moment  to  teach  him  how 
to  gain  a  victory  over  his  passion  or  to  help 
him  transmute  it  into  good.  Neither  parent 
nor  priest  gave  him  any  idea  of  the  sacredness 
of  the  force  that  had  swayed  him;  so  in  his 
blindness  he  called  it  evil  and  knelt  down  to 
the  God  of  his  fathers  in  prayer  for  strength  to 
overcome  it.  The  answer  to  his  petition  was 
pathetically  inadequate;  but  he  went  on  with 
his  studies  another  year  and  then  entered  upon 
his  mission. 


CHAPTER  NINE  181 

Spring  found  him  in  Shanghai  fully  per- 
suaded that  he  was  serving  God  aright.  Here 
there  were  no  actresses  to  tempt  him,  but  the 
old  symptoms  returned.  Olive  skinned  nymphs, 
with  repose  and  patience  written  in  their  faces, 
haunted  him.  He  went  through  a  period  of 
mental  conflict  and  in  the  end  concluded  that 
two  spirits,  which  must  adjust  themselves  as 
best  they  could,  dwelt  within  him.  In  one  of  his 
escapades  he  had  visited  the  slave  market  of 
Quong  Lung  with  the  result  that  a  virtuous 
little  slave  girl  had  become  his  property.  So 
when  the  two  house  boats  ran  their  noses  to- 
gether before  the  one  hundred  and  eight  fires, 
the  men  recognized  each  other  and  renewed  an 
acquaintance  which  was  not  altogether  pleasing 
to  Mr.  Ashman. 

Both  boats  being  headed  for  Shanghai,  it 
chanced  from  day  to  day  that  the  men  ex- 
changed visits  and  held  such  conversation  as 


182  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

circumstances  made  incumbent  upon  them. 
Occasionally  Ah  Moy's  timid  eyes  saw  the  steel 
gray  ones  of  the  foreigner  turned  upon  her, 
which  caused  her  to  scurry  under  cover  like  a 
frightened  hare.  Not  so,  however,  with  Wing. 
She  had,  away  back  in  the  secret  chambers  of 
her  heart,  the  desire  to  see  and  be  seen  and  she 
invited  stolen  glances  from  Henry  Ashman  as 
naturally  as  a  bird  plumes  for  its  mate. 

During  all  these  days  of  rowing  and  floating 
Quong  Lung  had  fed  his  girls  well  and  they 
were  greatly  improved  in  looks.  There  was  a 
gem  like  brightness  in  the  eyes  of  Ah  Moy  and 
warm  red  blood  in  her  lips.  The  thought  that 
she  had  saved  her  father's  family  from  starva- 
tion gave  her  a  consciousness  that  shone  in  her 
face  and  lightened  her  step.  Many  a  day  she 
pictured  the  old  home  with  the  Rain  God 
pouring  water  upon  its  parched  fields  and  the 
lamps  again  lighted  upon  the  ancestral  shrine. 


CHAPTER  NINE  18J 

She  was  glad  she  had  been  patient  enough  to 
listen  to  all  of  Wing's  visionary  conversation 
and  she  looked  with  pride  upon  the  tell-tale  hair 
which  she  had  trained  to  lie  in  neat  coils  at  the 
side  of  her  head.  Wing  had  passed  through 
occasional  fits  of  the  blues  when  she  sat  sulkily 
twisting  her  fingers  and  swinging  her  feet ;  but 
even  so  she  had  greatly  improved  under  the 
kindly  influence  of  Ah  Moy. 

The  boats  of  Quong  Lung  and  Henry  Ash- 
man kept  near  together  for  days  at  a  time  and 
were  now  blockaded  in  the  wilderness  of  small 
craft  that  swarms  in  the  suburbs  of  Shanghai. 
As  soon  as  they  could  work  their  way  through, 
the  little  party  would  again  set  their  feet  upon 
the  soil.  The  foreman  swore  and  the  crew 
drove  the  nose  of  Quong  Lung's  boat  into  the 
smallest  opening,  yet  it  was  two  days  before 
they  pulled  up  and,  amid  the  clatter  and  roar 
of  an  open  port,  landed  the  girls  upon  the 
wharf. 


184  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

A  sheet  of  warm  mist  hung  over  Shanghai, 
protecting  the  foliage  from  the  burning  sun 
and  making  the  gardens  along  the  Bund  glisten 
as  though  newly  varnished.  Foreigners  from 
many  countries  were  rushing  through  the 
streets  and  Ah  Moy  thought  that  she  had  never 
seen  such  hurry  and  confusion.  As  compared 
with  the  repose  of  her  father's  home  all  these 
strangers  seemed  like  madmen.  Crews  from 
the  warships,  clad  in  spotless  uniforms,  brushed 
past  her  and  rikisha  men  wrangled  about  their 
fees. 

"What  has  happened,"  said  Ah  Moy  to 
Wing,  "that  all  the  people  seem  so  excited?" 

"I  am  trying  to  think,"  replied  Wing,  "it 
seems  to  me  like  a  far-off  dream,  but  I  can  just 
remember  what  my  mother  used  to  say  about 
the  foreigners  always  being  in  a  hurry.  Repose 
is  unknown  to  them." 

"But  they  look  so  angry,"  said  Ah  Moy,  "do 
they  not  try  to  'keep  the  face'  ?" 


CHAPTER  NINE  185 

"No,"  replied  Wing,  "it  seems  like  very  long 
ago,  but  I  think  that  part  of  me  which  is  Amer- 
ican belongs  to  this  mad  rush.  Somehow  I  feel 
used  to  it  already." 

"And  what  are  those  red-turbaned  men  who 
walk  up  and  down  and  carry  knives  and  guns/' 
asked  Ah  Moy  of  Quong  Lung. 

"Oh,  those  are  Sikhs.  They  do  police  duty; 
they  are  the  men  who  capture  young  girls  when 
they  attempt  to  run  away,"  explained  he 
shrewdly. 

"But  even  they  are  not  so  dreadful  as  the 
people  with  white  faces  and  blue  eyes, — so  cold, 
oh  so  cold !"  said  Ah  Moy. 

But  the  white  skin  and  the  blue  eyes  were 
coming  back  to  Wing's  memory.  As  they 
passed  along  she  looked  into  every  man's  face 
inquiringly  as  if  to  say,  "Art  thou  not  my  noble 
father?  I  remember  him  as  through  a  glass 
darkly  and  methinks  he  was  the  same  manner 
of  man  as  thou  art." 


CHAPTER  X. 

"Happiness  and  misery  come  by  our  own 
invitation.  To  act  benevolently  and  assist  those 
who  are  in  danger  is  far  better  than  to  get  up 
idol  festivals." — Confucian  Tract. 

Quong  Lung  did  not  give  the  girls  much 
time  to  look  about;  but  hurried  them  into 
rikisha  and  had  them  transported  to  a  large 
building  on  the  Nanking  road.  There  he  put 
them  in  charge  of  an  old  woman  named  Wang 
who  looked  them  over  with  a  critical  eye  and 
said,  in  no  uncertain  tone: 

"This  is  the  time  you  have  been  cheated. 
Look  at  the  feet  of  that  girl,"  pointing  to  Ah 
Moy,  "they  are  too  small  for  a  slave.  Do  you 
expect  me  to  offer  her  my  shoulder  every  time 
she  tries  to  move?" 

"Oh,"  responded  Quong  Lung,  "do  not  be 


CHAPTER  TEN  187 

cross,  Wang.  I  will  manage  it.  There  are 
more  ways  than  one  to  make  money  out  of 
girls." 

"And  why  did  you  buy  the  Eurasian,"  con- 
tinued Wang,  without  heeding  the  answer, 
"you  promised  me  that  you  would  not  buy  any 
more  half-breeds.  The  Chinamen  will  not  have 
them  for  wives  and  there  is  always  danger  of 
trouble  if  you  sell  them  to  the  flower  boats. 
Now,  what  would  happen  if  that  girl's  father 
should  claim  her?" 

"Why,"  exclaimed  Quong  Lung,  "it  would 
probably  happen  that  I  should  get  some  money. 
I  have  a  plan — " 

But  here  he  stopped  short  and  left  Wang  to 
surmise  as  best  she  could  what  the  plan  might 
be.  Wang  looked  again  at  the  pitiful  figure  of 
Wing  and  said : 

"That  kind  are  always  getting  sick.  Do  you 
suppose  I  have  nothing  to  do  but  take  care  of 
sick  Eurasians?" 


1M  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

However  Wang  might  grumble  she  had  no 
alternative  but  to  obey,  so  she  took  the  girls 
into  a  large  room,  the  windows  of  which  were 
barred  with  iron  rods  and  the  doors  of  which 
swung  on  huge  wooden  hinges.  Flaky  white- 
wash had  once  covered  the  walls  but  it  was  now 
relieved  by  streaks  of  dirt  where  the  rain  had 
run  down.  Through  a  grease-rimmed  hole  in 
the  partition  was  a  strip  of  cow-hide  on  the 
other  end  of  which  was  a  large  fan,  that  hung 
directly  over  old  Wang's  bed,  the  ultimate  ob- 
ject of  this  arrangement  being  that  on  occasions 
of  heat  and  mosquitos  the  girls  could  keep  the 
fan  in  motion.  From  the  ceiling  dangled 
women's  clothing  in  all  stages  of  wear  and 
tear ;  the  blue  cotton  of  the  coolie,  the  butterfly 
embroidered  silk  of  the  dancing  girl  and  the 
shiny  black  of  the  middle  class  wife,  hung  side 
by  side. 

Through  the  grated  window  the  Yang-tse- 


CHAPTER  TEN  1W 

Kiang  river,  with  the  lowest  water  that  had 
been  known  for  ages,  shimmered  in  the  dis- 
tance. Ah  Moy's  quick  eye  cast  a  glance  at  the 
thread  of  silver  winding  toward  the  sea;  but 
Wing  saw  only  the  people  in  the  street  below. 

"Oh,"  said  she,  "if  I  could  only  get  down 
and  go  with  all  those  people!" 

"But  where  would  you  go?"  asked  Ah  Moy. 

"Oh,  just  go.  I  feel  a  spirit  within  me  that 
says  'go'." 

A  pained  expression  crept  into  Ah  Moy's 
face  but  she  made  no  reply.  She  had  so  often 
observed  the  great  gulf  between  Wing's 
thought  and  her  own  that  she  had  ceased  to 
wonder  at  it  and  felt  only  sorrow. 

In  a  short  time  old  Wang  came  in  and  very 
unceremoniously  set  both  girls  to  work. 

"Can  you  wind  silk  from  the  cocoons,"  asked 
she,  "it  requires  close  attention  for  I  do  not 
wish  any  of  it  spoiled." 


190  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

So  saying  she  set  down  a  basket  filled  with 
the  dainty  webs  of  the  domestic  silk  worm. 
Although  the  reels  were  old  and  gummy,  the 
girls  worked  patiently  for  several  hours  before 
their  task-mistress  again  appeared.  When  she 
came  and  saw  how  well  they  had  done  she  was 
quite  repentant  of  the  cross  reception  she  had 
given  them  and  said: 

"You  may  have  some  food  now,  and  after 
eating  you  may  select  articles  from  the  rafters 
and  wear  them.  If  they  need  mending,  I  pre- 
sume you  know  how  to  do  it." 

The  girls  ate  their  rice  and  mushrooms  and 
then  pulled  down  such  garments  as  they  desired 
and  tried  them  on.  With  a  little  repairing  they 
soon  transformed  themselves  into  tidy  looking 
young  women. 

When  Wang  came  back  she  found  them 
again  at  work  and  showing  such  gentle  obedi- 
ence that  her  austere  manner  changed  to  one 


CHAPTER  TEN  191 

of  kindness.  As  the  days  passed  Ah  Moy  won 
her  way  very  near  to  the  heart  of  the  old 
woman,  for  she  not  only  did  her  own  work  but 
frequently  repaired  the  damage  done  by  Wing's 
haste  and  impatience;  so  it  came  to  pass  that 
by  the  end  of  the  first  week,  the  three  women 
had  adjusted  themselves  to  one  another  in  quite 
a  home-like  way. 

Quong  Lung  had  not  been  to  see  them  during 
all  this  time. 

"They  are  in  safe  hands,"  he  said  to  a 
friend,  "old  Wang  has  had  many  years'  ex- 
perience with  girls.  If  the  drouth  continues,  I 
think  I  shall  go  back  to  Honan  for  I  can  get 
girls  at  any  price.  The  two,  if  kept  at  work, 
will  earn  their  rice,  while  I  collect  another 
cargo." 

"But  can  you  sell  them,  if  the  times  keep 
threatening?  There  is  both  drouth  and  war  in 
the  air,"  replied  his  friend.  Quong  Lung, 
however,  paid  little  attention  to  war  rumors. 


192  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"It  is  an  old  story,"  he  said,  "it  is  always 
threatening.  And  as  for  the  drouth,  it  is  my 
best  friend." 

Soon  after  this,  however,  there  was  black- 
ness in  the  sky  and  the  wind  bellowed  down  the 
Nanking  road;  the  gutters  sent  up  noisome 
odors  and  forked  lightning  darted  through  the 
clouds.  Quong  Lung  scented  the  storm  and 
went  out  upon  the  street,  only  to  see  the  sky 
shut  down  and  the  water  falling  in  sheets  upon 
the  dry  earth. 

"I  must  look  after  my  girls.  This  rain 
shapes  my  affairs  in  quite  a  new  way,"  he 
thought.  "No  more  can  I  buy  the  daughters 
of  the  literati  at  my  own  price  and  no  more  will 
T  visit  the  province  of  Honan." 

He  tied  his  trousers  around  his  ankles,  let 
out  his  queue  which  had  been  tucked  into  his 
blouse  pocket  and  turned  his  face  toward  the 
place  where  the  slave  girls  were  confined. 


CHAPTER  TEN  193 

Old  Wang  knew  how  many  tinkles  of  the 
bell  meant  Quong  Lung  and  she  descended  the 
stairs  in  haste  to  let  him  in.  She  reported  that 
the  girls  were  well  and  in  suitable  condition  to 
sell. 

"At  your  command,  I  will  prepare  them  for 
the  market,"  she  said. 

Quong  Lung  knew  what  she  meant  and  took 
from  his  pouch  a  gold  piece  with  which  to  buy 
hair  pins  and  bracelets  and  such  other  adorn- 
ments as  add  to  the  attractions  of  womankind. 

"Have  them  ready  tomorrow,"  he  directed, 
"I  will  bring  some  one  to  see  them  by  ten 
o'clock." 

Thus  commanded  Wang  began  her  prepara- 
tions. She  shaved  their  foreheads  and  combed 
their  hair,  plastering  down  with  mucilage  such 
tresses  as  showed  signs  of  being  unruly;  she 
touched  their  eyebrows  with  black,  turning 
them  deftly  to  the  shape  of  the  willow  leaf; 


194  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

and  their  lips  she  brightened  with  vermilion. 
She  pressed  folds  into  their  trousers  with  as 
much  precision  as  a  tailor  presses  the  garments 
of  men.  All  the  morning  Wang  fretted  and 
fumed  over  the  girls  and  when  her  labors  were 
ended  they  looked  very  different  from  the  timid 
little  country  maids  whom  Quong  Lung  had 
bought. 

When  he  rang  the  bell,  a  number  of  would-be 
purchasers  followed  at  his  heels.  Most  of  them 
were  Chinamen  in  search  of  wives,  but  a  few 
were  foreigners  in  search  of  pleasure.  Among 
the  former  Ah  Moy  was  a  prime  favorite,  but 
Quong  Lung  held  his  prize  at  a  high  figure. 

"You  cannot  buy  the  daughter  of  a  Ching 
Fo  every  day,"  he  would  say.  One  merchant 
offered  five  hundred  dollars  for  her;  but  the 
slave  dealer  scorned  the  amount. 

"I  can  sell  her  in  San  Francisco  for  two 
thousand  dollars,"  he  declared  and  to  others  he 


CHAPTER  TEN  195 

replied,  "No,  no;  I  can  do  much  better  in  San 
Francisco." 

As  for  Wing,  no  one  seemed  to  want  her  at 
any  price.  At  every  foreigner,  she  looked  with 
strange,  inquiring  eyes,  as  though  she  thought 
he  might  be  her  father  and  when  she  was  left 
alone  with  Ah  Moy,  for  a  few  moments,  she 
whispered : 

"Do  you  think  I  could  tell  my  father,  if  I  saw 
him?" 

Two  weeks  passed  in  a  fruitless  attempt  to 
sell  the  girls  when,  one  morning,  Henry  Ash- 
man, accompanied  by  another  young  American, 
whom  he  affectionately  called  "Frank",  came 
up  the  stairs  to  look  at  the  slave  girls. 

Ashman  was  pale  and  nervous,  and  in  an- 
swer to  Quong  Lung's  inquiry  as  to  whether 
he  wanted  a  girl,  replied,  "Yes." 

"Then  you  take  this  one,"  and  Quong  Lung 
pointed  to  Wing,  "the  Chinese  do  not  like  half- 
breeds." 


1%  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"She  is  probably  the  daughter  of  one  of  our 
own  country-men,"  observed  Frank,  in  an  un- 
dertone. The  remark  cut  Mr.  Ashman  as  a 
knife  cuts  and  he  passed  her  by.  Stepping  over 
to  where  Ah  Moy  was  standing,  he  patted  her 
on  the  cheek,  saying: 

"What  is  the  price  of  this  little  piece  of 
bric-a-brac  ?" 

No  such  liberty  had  ever  been  taken  with  the 
daughter  of  Ching  Fo  before  and  it  brought 
into  her  face  an  expression  of  defiance  beyond 
belief.  She  felt  the  meaning  of  the  steel  gray 
eyes  as  they  looked  down  upon  her  and  an 
appalling  desire  for  vengence  filled  her  heart. 
Notwithstanding  her  amazing  self  control, 
there  came  upon  her  such  a  surging  of  angry 
passions  as  she  had  never  before  experienced. 
To  obey  she  had  always  been  accustomed;  to 
forgive  an  injury  was  in  accordance  with  the 


CHAPTER  TEN  197 

teaching  of  her  gentle  Buddha ;  but  this  was  an 
offense  that  moved  her  to  burning  hate.  She 
held  Quong  Lung  responsible,  because  into  his 
hands  her  father  had  given  her.  She  thought 
of  the  parting  scene  at  the  monastery  and  of 
her  father's  anguish  when  he  told  her  of  his 
inability  to  get  the  clause  to  protect  her  from 
dishonor.  And,  more  than  all,  she  thought  of 
the  knife  that  she  still  carried  in  her  sleeve. 

Quong  Lung  had  been  kind  to  her  and  she 
loved  him,  but  he  could  hold  her  in  the  hollow 
of  his  hand  only  so  long  as  he  respected  her 
ancient  traditions.  At  a  glance  the  slave  dealer 
saw  that  he  had  to  reckon  with  the  old  aristo- 
cratic spirit  of  China,  and  he  adroitly  led  Mr. 
Ashman  aside  and  said  to  him: 

"She  has  only  recently  been  taken  from  her 
parents  and  she  may  be  difficult  to  manage." 

The  missionary  turned  deathly  pale.  He 
took  the  arm  of  his  friend  and  pushed  him 


198  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

toward  the  stairs.  When  they  had  reached  the 
street,  he  said: 

"My  God!  Frank,  what  would  my  mother 
say  if  she  knew  what  happened  this  morning? 
I  belong  to  an  honorable  family  and  I  am  a 
Christian  minister  and  yet  this  daughter  of  a 
heathen  has  a  finer  sense  of  honor  than  I.  Tell 
me,  oh  tell  me,  why,  I  am  cursed  with  appetites 
that  are  beyond  my  control." 

"Your  case  is  not  an  exceptional  one,"  re- 
plied his  friend,  "as  all  the  open  ports  of  Asia 
testify.  It  is  a  humiliating  confession  to  make, 
but  we,  of  the  west,  have  much  to  learn  from 
the  Chinese.  Go  where  you  please  and  you 
find  them  master  over  their  appetites.  I  know 
a  priest  who  speaks  good  English  and  I  often 
consult  him  about  my  physical  body.  If  you 
wish,  I  will  take  you  to  him." 

"A  priest?    A  Buddhist  priest?" 

"Yes,"  answered  Frank,  "I  have  lived  longer 


CHAPTER  TEN  199 

in  China  than  you  have  and  I  begin  to  under- 
stand that  there  is  a  great  difference  between 
their  teaching  and  ours.  And  whether  you 
believe  it  or  not,  I  know  that  they  regard  us  as 
brutes  on  the  sex  question.  Shall  we  go  to  the 
priest?" 

"Go  anywhere,"  despondently  replied  Mr. 
Ashman,  "I  am  willing  to  embrace  either 
paganism  or  heathenism,  if  it  will  help  me  to 
shake  off  this  vicious  appetite  which  I  so 
loathe." 

The  two  young  men  walked  a  few  blocks  then 
turned  into  one  of  the  crooked  little  byways 
which  led  to  a  temple.  A  toothless  old  priest 
admitted  them  and,  after  asking  them  to 
abstain  from  doing  damage  to  the  building, 
was  about  to  leave  when  Frank  deftly  slipped 
a  half  dollar  into  his  hand  and  asked  if  they 
might  have  an  interview  with  Father  Took 
Sing. 


200  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

The  old  priest  was  surprised,  for  he  had  not 
expected  Americans  to  ask  for  religious  in- 
struction. He  led  the  way,  however,  to  a  side 
door  and  bade  them  enter.  The  little  cell  into 
which  they  passed  contained  a  bronze  image 
of  the  Buddha  seated  upon  a  lotus  flower;  a 
table,  and  a  couple  of  chairs.  The  repose 
depicted  in  the  face  of  the  idol,  the  simplicity 
of  its  drapery  and  the  bareness  of  the  cell,  was 
in  such  sharp  contrast  to  the  ostentation  of  the 
church  to  which  the  young  minister  had  been 
accustomed,  that  he  stood  as  one  who  unex- 
pectedly finds  himself  upon  holy  ground. 

For  some  moments  both  young  men  remained 
silently  contemplating  their  surroundings,  when 
a  priest  noiselessly  entered  and  stood  before 
them.  His  shaven  head  and  yellow  robe  con- 
sorted with  the  place  and  seemed  to  add 
solemnity  to  it.  Mr.  Ashman  addressed  him  in 
a  voice  which  trembled  with  emotion.  The 


CHAPTER  TEN  201 

priest  listened  and  sighed  and  clicked  the  beads 
of  his  wooden  rosary  and  when  the  young  man 
ceased  speaking,  he  cast  his  eyes  upon  the  floor 
in  deep  meditation.  After  a  few  moments  he 
raised  them  and  said: 

"What  is  it,  my  son,  that  you  ask  of  me  ?  It 
is  seldom  that  a  Christian  comes  to  me  for 
advice." 

"I  would  know  your  opinion  about  the 
disease  called  lust,"  bravely  replied  Mr.  Ash- 
man, "and  I  would  know  if  you  can  prescribe 
for  it." 

The  priest  placed  his  left  hand  upon  his 
forehead  and  with  his  right  held  fast  to  his 
beads.  Every  wrinkle  in  his  old  face  spoke  of 
sympathy  and  love.  After  a  silence  of  some 
moments,  he  said: 

"It  is  well  that  thou  art  here,  for  while  the 
Orient  has  much  to  learn  from  the  west,  and 
while  your  Jesus  was  a  great  sage  whom  all 


202  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

good  men  must  reverence  and  love,  still  there 
is  some  wisdom  for  which  you  must  come  to  the 
Far  East." 

So  saying,  he  took  from  the  drawer  of  the 
table  a  sheet  of  paper  and  a  slab  of  India  ink, 
and  drew  in  softest  lines,  a  serpent  underneath 
a  lotus  flower. 

"Few  men  can  translate  this  picture,"  said 
he,  "but  it  has  in  it  all  the  heavens  and  all  the 
hells  of  human  life.  To  the  Asiatic  man  the 
serpent  has  always  stood  for  the  knowledge 
which  you  seek;  but  in  making  it  a  symbol  of 
evil  your  early  Christians  surrounded  the  pas- 
sions with  mystery  and  suspicion.  Dozens  of 
pages  might  be  filled  with  quotations  from  our 
classical  literature  to  show  how  ancient  and 
how  deep-rooted  is  the  Chinaman's  belief  in  the 
sanctity  of  the  creative  act.  It  is  not  so  with 
your  western  people.  He  will  be  a  benefactor 
to  your  race  who  shall  inaugurate  new  ideas 


CHAPTER  TEN  203 

concerning  the  fleshly  appetites.  And  now,  my 
son,  it  would  be  a  poor  adviser  who  should  point 
out  so  confidently  a  disease  and  not  be  able  to 
prescribe  for  it.  So  I  tell  thee  in  all  fatherly 
love  that  your  education  concerning  the  pas- 
sions has  been  neglected.  They  are  not  evil, 
as  you  think,  they  are  valuable,  even  precious; 
but  you  must  have  more  definite  knowledge. 
Nature  has  condensed  in  them  one  of  her  most 
powerful  forces,  but  unless  great  care  be  used 
to  conserve  and  transmute  it  into  good,  it  will 
scatter  and  pour  uncleanness  through  the  body. 
The  exercises  for  transmutation  are  simple  and 
no  man  need  be  discouraged.  They  consist  in 
proper  thinking  and  proper  breathing.  Keep 
the  mind  away  from  the  ordinary  imagining, 
and  hold  as  long  as  possible  an  image  of  virtue 
and  abstemiousness.  Stand  erect  with  head 
well  up.  Remember  this,  for  no  man  thinks  his 
best  thoughts  while  his  head  is  bent  forward. 


204  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Then  fill  the  lungs  and  the  spinal  cord  as  much 
as  possible  with  breath.  When  once  this  habit 
is  established  and  the  mental  vision  can  be  kept, 
you  will  be  conscious  that  the  force  is  passing 
upward  and  stimulating  the  brain.  These  ex- 
ercises may  be  taken  at  any  time  but  when  you 
feel  the  desire  strongly,  it  is  most  easily  trans- 
muted. If  you  lose  your  mental  image  do  not 
be  disappointed  but  renew  it  with  determina- 
tion to  be  master  over  it. 

"The  mere  calm  demand  of  the  will  may  do 
something,  yet  it  is  not  so  effective  as  the  subtle 
force  produced  by  rhythmic  breathing  and  the 
thought  of  virtue.  The  lotus  flower  I  have 
drawn  for  you  is  a  symbol  of  this  purity  of 
thqught,  and  the  serpent  represents  the  wisdom 
that  accompanies  it.  Lust  is  a  monster  that 
comes  forth  in  the  darkness  and  the  superior 
man  will  fortify  himself  at  that  time,  and 
neither  eat  nor  sit  nor  stand  sensually.  Even 


CHAPTER  TEN  205 

the  arms  and  legs  of  a  virtuous  man  know  how 
to  arrange  themselves. 

"When  once  you  begin  to  train  your  mind, 
your  own  judgment  will  dictate  what  to  do  and 
soon  new  laws  will  set  themselves  up  for  your 
perfect  redemption.  'Happy  the  man  who  hath 
due  place  assigned  to  all  the  beasts  that  roar 
within  the  carnal  mind.' ' 

There  was  a  long  silence  in  the  little  room 
before  the  young  men  arose  and  passed  out  into 
the  street.  Ashman  was  much  agitated  and 
said: 

"If  all  this  be  true,  we  Christians  should 
have  been  teaching  it  ages  ago.  I  fear  that  to 
all  our  sins  of  commission  must  be  added  this 
great  one  of  omission." 

Pondering  over  the  priest's  advice  they 
walked  to  their  respective  homes  neither  feel- 
ing any  desire  to  return  to  the  building  where 
the  slave  girls  were  kept. 


206  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Other  would-be  purchasers  left  Quong 
Lung  and  he  saw  the  day  go  by  without  effect- 
ing a  sale. 

"I  am  out  of  luck,"  he  said  to  old  Wang  as 
he  was  closing  the  house  for  the  day,  "and  I 
believe  I  shall  shape  my  affairs  so  as  to  make 
the  trip  to  San  Francisco." 

"I  told  you  so,"  replied  old  Wang  with  true 
womanly  instinct,  "Ah  Moy's  feet  are  too  small 
and  Wing  is  only  a  consumer  of  rice.  She  will 
never  bring  the  money  you  have  invested  in 
her,  beside  she  is  not  in  good  health,  and  may 
at  any  time  become  a  burden." 

"Well,  then,"  said  Quong  Lung,  "I  may  as 
well  give  it  up.  I  can  get  something  for  her 
at  the  flower  boats,  and  then  I  can  take  Ah 
Moy  to  San  Francisco  and  do  well  on  her.  But 
when  I  bought  the  half-breed  I  had  a  plan  and 
if  it  had  worked  as  I  expected,  all  would  have 
been  well." 


CHAPTER  TEN  207 

"You  have  hinted  at  your  plan  before/'  said 
Wang,  a  little  piqued;  "and  I  suppose  I  know 
what  it  is." 

"I  suppose  you  do,"  acknowledged  he,  "you 
are  shrewd  enough  to  see  that  if  I  could  find 
her  father,  I  could  make  him  pay  well  for  her. 
But  as  I  have  failed  in  that,  I  think  I  will  let  her 
go  for  what  I  can  get  and  trust  to  better  luck 
next  time." 

The  next  morning  Wang  dressed  Wing  in 
the  best  the  place  afforded  and  sat  her  down  to 
await  the  arrival  of  Quong  Lung.  Adorned 
with  jewelry  and  fine  clothes,  the  perfume  of 
sandal  wood  in  her  hair  and  her  fine  olive  skin 
set  off  with  cheeks  and  lips  of  vermilion,  she 
suited  fairly  well  the  requirements  of  the  flower 
boat.  The  only  slip  from  virtue  that  hampered 
the  poor  child  was  the  slip  that  her  father  had 
bestowed  upon  her  before  she  was  born, 
and  this  fact  gave  Quong  Lung  a  reason- 


208  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

able  hope  of  selling  her;  but  he  still  regretted 
that  he  had  missed  finding  her  father,  the  white 
devil,  who  had  come  to  China  to  get  rich  and 
left  without  giving  him  an  opportunity  to 
extort  a  share  of  that  wealth.  However, 
Quong  Lung  was  not  a  man  to  cry  over  spilt 
milk.  He  came  promptly  to  the  house  in  the 
Nanking  road,  and,  in  a  savage  way,  gave  the 
three  tinkles  to  the  bell  which  brought  old 
Wang  to  the  door  in  double  quick  time. 

"Is  she  ready,"  asked  he. 

"Yes,  she  is  ready  and  she  looks  very  pretty," 
replied  Wang  soothingly,  for  she  saw  that  he 
was  in  bad  humor.  Quong  Lung  took  the  half- 
breed  girl  by  the  hand  and  led  her  down  the 
steps.  She  flung  back  a  parting  word  to  Ah 
Moy  and  seemed  pleased  that  new  scenes 
awaited  her.  No  knowledge  had  she  of  the 
brief,  bitter  life  of  the  brothel  nor  of  the  cruel 
hardships  endured  by  those  who  lived  there. 


CHAPTER   TEN  209 

"A  fragile  child,  from  a  home  unblessed, 

To  be  culled  and  worn  on  a  sated  breast," 
was  poor  little  Wing,  as  she  said  goodbye  to 
Ah  Moy,  and  followed  Quong  Lung  like  a  lamb 
to  the  slaughter. 

"Come  this  way,"  commanded  he,  "and  try 
to  behave  like  Ah  Moy,  or  I  shall  not  be  able 
to  sell  you  at  all." 

Just  as  he  was  about  seating  her  in  a  rikisha 
a  policeman  tapped  him  on  the  shoulder  and 
said,  in  very  good  English : 

"A  man  awaits  you  at  the  guild  house,  sir." 

Quong  Lung's  face  brightened.  He  felt  that 
this  might  be  the  message  for  which  he  had 
waited  in  vain  since  his  arrival  in  Shanghai; 
the  message  that  would  tell  him  the  where- 
abouts of  the  American  who  was  the  father  of 
his  slave. 

He  sent  the  girl  back  up  stairs  and  made 
haste  to  a  building  which  was  situated  in  an 


210  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

unsavory  part  of  the  city,  known  as  the  Foo 
Chow  road.  From  the  outside  nothing  in- 
dicated what  might  be  within;  but  the  smells 
were  those  of  Chinatown  and  the  guard  at  the 
door  was  of  the  Ho  Wang  company. 

As  Quong  Lung  entered,  two  men  arose  and 
bowed  diplomatically  low.  Quong  Lung  shook 
his  own  hands  and  motioned  them  to  a  table; 
tea,  tobacco  and  Sam  Shu  came  in  courses ;  but 
at  last  the  tallest  of  the  two  men  said : 

"Most  honored  friend  we  have  secured  the 
information  you  desired  concerning  the  father 
of  the  eurasian  girl  and  we  would  know  how 
much  you  are  willing  to  pay  us  for  our  trouble." 

"Is  the  testimony  correct  beyond  the  perad- 
venture  of  a  doubt?"  inquired  Quong  Lung. 

"It  is  a  transcript  from  the  temple  records," 
replied  the  first  speaker,  "I  swear  it  will  put 
you  into  communication  with  the  father  of  the 
girl." 


CHAPTER  TEN  211 

>f 

"I  would  pay  something  down,  and  more — 
if  the  matter  comes  to  a  successful  issue,"  ven- 
tured Quong  Lung  guardedly. 

"The  labor  has  been  great,"  urged  the  man, 
"we  have  searched  over  half  the  records  in  the 
province.  We  must  have,  at  least,  three  hun- 
dred dollars." 

Quong  Lung  rattled  some  coin  in  his  pocket 
but  beyond  that  made  no  reply.  After  a  short 
time,  the  two  men  arose  to  go  and  Quong  Lung, 
seeing  that  they  intended  no  more  parley,  said : 

"Come  back  tomorrow  and  I  will  see  what 
can  be  done.  The  price  is  too  high ;  but  I  will 
consider  it." 

Quong  Lung  had  already  exhausted  his  own 
ingenuity  in  search  of  evidence  that  would 
enable  him  to  find  the  man  who  had  bought 
Wing's  mother  and  so  cruelly  deserted  her  and 
he  had  been  compelled  to  resort  to  the  profes- 
sional detective.  These  men  he  knew  to  be 


212  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

* 

merciless  in  their  demands  for  money,  but  they 
were  his  only  hope  and  the  delay  of  twenty-four 
hours  was  but  a  strategic  move  that  he  might 
ascertain  from  old  Wang  a  little  more  definitely 
the  condition  of  Wing's  health. 

He  walked  back  to  the  Nanking  road  and 
again  rang  the  bell.  Old  Wang  was  in  a  com- 
municative humor  and  he  had,  on  such  occa- 
sions, no  hesitancy  in  telling  her  the  truth  about 
his  plans. 

"I  am  in  a  way,"  said  he,  "to  find  the  where- 
abouts of  Wing's  father  and  to  get  the  infor- 
mation I  wanted  as  to  his  finances.  But  I  wish 
your  opinion  as  to  the  state  of  her  health;  for 
it  will  not  pay  to  expend  any  more  money  on 
her  if  she  is  not  in  tolerable  condition.  In  other 
words,  if  she  is  likely  to  go  to  the  white  man's 
hell  before  I  can  get  my  hands  on  the  father, 
I  want  to  know  it." 

"Oh,  no  fear  of  that.     I  have  been  in  the 


CHAPTER  TEN  213 

business  for  twenty  years  and  I  should  say, 
barring  accidents,  she  would  outlive  Ah  Moy. 
The  foreigner's  children  do  hold  on  to  life  un- 
accountably," she  reassured  him. 

"Then,"  said  Quong  Lung,  "you  shall  keep 
Wing  for  the  present  and  say  to  anyone  who 
calls  that  she  is  already  sold.  Help  me  now, 
Wang,  and  when  I  get  a  hold  on  that  fellow, 
we  will  both  have  more  money  than  we  have 
now.  Goodbye." 

Next  morning  the  trio  met  again  at  the  guild 
hall  and  Quong  Lung  dispensed  tea  with  a 
bountiful  hand  but  the  two  detectives  reiterated 
their  price  of  three  hundred  dollars  for  the 
information. 

"It  is  exorbitant,"  protested  the  slave  dealer. 

"But  it  is  proportionate  to  the  good;  the 
spawn  of  the  white  devil  is  valuable  when  all 
the  signs  come  right,"  urged  the  tall  one. 

An  end  to  the  parley  came,  however,  and 


214  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Quong  Lung  paid  the  three  hundred  dollars 
for  a  piece  of  paper  upon  which  was  written : 

"Ukiah  Grant,  dealer  in  Wines  and  Liquors, 
North  Honan  road,  purchased  one  slave  girl 
named  Wo  Sing,  in  1885.  In  1892  he  retired 
from  business  and  returned  to  his  native  city 
of  San  Francisco,  California,  U.  S.  A.  The 
records  show  that  he  paid  taxes  upon  one  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars.  Signed  by  Wu  Chow, 
Recorder  of  the  Kwan  Yin  temple." 

A  great  cloud  was  lifted  from  Quong  Lung, 
when  he  saw  the  official  stamp  of  the  Kwan  Yin 
temple,  for  he  knew  that  this  was  testimony 
no  man  could  dispute.  With  the  document  still 
in  his  hand,  he  returned  to  the  Nanking  road 
and  told  old  Wang  of  his  success. 

"You  may  begin  now  to  put  both  the  girls 
in  training  for  a  trip  to  San  Francisco.  Ah  Moy 
must  be  taught  to  say  that  she  is  the  daugh- 
ter of  Quong  Lung,  and  born  in  the  United 


CHAPTER  TEN  215 

States ;  otherwise  the  devil  will  be  to  pay  when 
I  try  to  land  her.  It  is  the  old  story  of  the 
custom  house.  You  must  also  produce  a  mole 
on  her  right  cheek.  Aside  from  that  she  fits 
the  passport  that  I  have  very  well.  The  half- 
breed,  I  am  sure,  is  all  right,  as  I  can  prove 
that  she  is  the  daughter  of  a  wealthy  citizen  of 
that  virtuous  community." 

So  saying,  he  dropped  another  coin  in  the 
hand  of  Wang  and  went  out.  There  was  buoy- 
ancy in  his  step  as  he  walked  briskly  toward  the 
Bund.  The  amount  of  money  that  he  might 
extort  from  Ukiah  Grant  when  he  landed  in 
San  Francisco  with  his  half-breed  daughter 
was  as  yet  an  unknown  quantity;  but  he  felt 
sure  that  it  would  swell  his  bank  account. 

It  would  be  a  week  yet,  before  another 
steamer  sailed  and  by  that  time  he  hoped  to 
have  everything  ready.  From  the  Nanking 
road  he  went  directly  to  the  office  of  the  Nippon 


216  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Yusem  Kashia,  where  he  commanded  re- 
spectful attention,  for  he  was  a  good  customer 
and  made  the  trip  often. 


CHAPTER  XL 

"He  abused  me,  he  cheated  me,  he  slandered 
me.  To  those  who  harbor  such  thoughts, 
hatred  will  never  cease,  for  hatred  does  not 
cease  by  hatred,  but  by  love." 

— Buddhist  Tract. 

Poor  old  China  was  daily  growing  more 
bitter  against  the  foreigners.  Men  gathered  on 
the  streets  to  discuss  the  situation,  but  never 
seemed  able  to  decide  what  lay  at  the  bottom  of 
the  trouble.  Both  noble  and  ignoble,  however, 
ran  a  thread  of  hatred  for  Christianity  through 
all  their  talk.  The  injunction  of  the  mission- 
aries that  a  man  should  leave  father  and  mother 
and  follow  Christ,  always  brought  forth  violent 
condemnation.  The  fact  that  the  missionaries 
preceded  the  tradesman,  was  another  matter  of 
much  comment,  for  it  was  the  western  trades- 
man whom  they  did  not  wish  to  encourage. 


218  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Everywhere  was  unspeakable  confusion;  the 
leisure  class,  with  bitterness  in  every  eye;  the 
poor  coolie  filled  with  suspicion  and  fear.  From 
day  to  day  these  mutterings  continued  until 
they  finally  broke  into  a  storm  that  shook  the 
coast  from  Peking  to  Canton. 

Especially  in  the  north  was  the  news  in  the 
nature  of  "wrath  laid  up  against  the  day  of 
wrath".  Hatred  against  the  foreigners  broke 
out  in  mobs  and  riots  and  the  result  was  that 
the  Righteous  Defenders  again  issued  a  special 
edict  in  the  name  of  the  God  of  Happiness.  The 
document  was  first  found  posted  upon  the  wall 
of  a  protestant  church  at  Kading,  and  was 
translated  into  English  for  the  North  China 
Daily  News,  as  follows: 

"The  fifth  day  of  the  fifth  moon  has  been 
chosen  for  the  suppression  of  the  Christian 
religion;  the  burning  of  all  church  property; 
the  massacre  of  all  missionaries  and  converted 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  219 

Chinese.  We  know  there  are  many  pawn  shops 
attached  to  these  establishments  where  there 
are  vestments  and  jewels.  We  will  take  them 
all  for  the  payment  of  our  soldiers.  After  that 
we  will  sweep  away  the  public  halls  and  all  that 
is  not  for  the  good  of  our  own  people.  We  have 
suffered  so  much  that  now  it  is  time  to  avenge 
ourselves.  We  have  one  hundred  thousand 
divinely  appointed  soldiers  who  will  leave 
nothing  undone  that  will  help  the  people  toward 
prosperity.  Signed  by  the  ancient  order  of 
patriots  and  Righteous  Defenders." 

(The  above  is  a  correct  copy  of  the  Boxer 
proclamation,  as  translated  for  the  North 
China  News.) 

As  soon  as  it  became  known  that  a  massacre 
was  to  be  inaugurated,  pandemonium  broke 
loose.  Business  was  suspended  and  every  man 
gathered  such  weapons  for  self-defense  as  he 
could  lay  his  hands  upon.  A  faithful  few 


220  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

bombarded  the  heavens  with  prayer;  but  the 
great  majority  put  their  trust  in  munitions  of 
war;  while  both  saint  and  sinner  kept  one  eye 
steadily  on  the  steamship  offices  for  the  earliest 
possible  opportunity  to  secure  passage  to  a 
place  of  safety.  On  the  wharves  the  carters 
swore,  by  the  five-toed  dragon,  that  the  accum- 
ulation of  truck  was  overtopping  the  offices, 
while  at  the  tourist  hotel,  situated  on  the  water 
front,  the  foreigners  established  headquarters, 
with  the  possibility  in  view  that  it  might  be 
expedient  to  jump  into  the  sea. 

This  condition  of  affairs  had  been  going  on 
for  a  week,  when  the  panic-stricken  from  the 
interior  began  to  arrive.  It  now  seemed  as 
though  China  were  vomiting  her  entire  foreign 
population  into  this  one  port.  Sunburnt,  be- 
draggled and  hungry,  they  came  in  herds  like 
deer  before  a  forest  fire.  Every  moment  the 
commodities  of  life  were  becoming  more  diffi- 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  221 

cult  to  procure  and  every  moment  the  crowd 
increased.  An  incredible  number  of  children 
all  with  voices  and  with  digestive  organs, 
added  to  this  general  tumult.  Side  by  side  with 
the  throngs  of  missionaries  were  foreigners  of 
every  conceivable  type, — Jews,  who  had  been 
driven  out  of  Russia  by  the  persecutions  there; 
saloon  men  who  had  flocked  over  to  China 
under  the  protection  of  the  "open  door" ;  agents 
for  every  portable  article  that  England, 
Germany,  or  France,  had  to  sell,  and  last,  but 
not  least,  hordes  of  Chinamen  fleeing  from  their 
own  country  to  find  protection  under  a  foreign 
flag. 

The  Bund  was  a  scene  that  beggars  de- 
scription; blocking  the  way  was  every  con- 
ceivable object  that  man  could  carry  off,  beds, 
coffins,  clocks,  bundles  of  silk  and  occasionally, 
lying  prone  across  the  path,  a  Chinaman  lost 
in  the  delights  of  the  opium  smoke.  Light  up 


222  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

this  scene  with  the  lurid  passions  that  are  in- 
herent in  the  heart  of  man  and  you  have  the 
Shanghai  in  which  Quong  Lung  found  himself 
on  the  first  of  July. 

Into  this  bedlam  he  came,  complacently 
leading  his  two  slave  girls.  Tucked  away 
under  his  blouse  were  three  European  steerage 
tickets,  the  transcript  of  the  temple  record,  for 
which  he  had  paid  three  hundred  dollars,  and 
two  passports,  one  for  Ah  Moy  and  one  for 
himself.  He  did  not  think  it  necessary  to  have 
a  passport  for  Wing,  since  he  could  prove  that 
she  was  the  daughter  of  an  American  citizen. 

His  own  passport  recited  that  he  was  a  mer- 
chant doing  business  on  Jackson  street,  the 
kind  of  business  it  was  not  necessary  to  relate. 
He  was  familiar  with  the  exclusion  act  and  so 
drew  a  hair  line  on  its  wording.  The  passport 
on  which  he  expected  to  land  Ah  Moy  stated 
that  she  was  Chinese,  twenty  years  old,  and 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  223 

born  in  California.  This  document  he  had  used 
before  and  it  had  worked  well — so  well  that  he 
was  greeted  with  smiles  at  the  Hong  Kong 
American  bank  on  Kearney  street,  and  so  well 
that  his  reputation  for  building  joss  houses  was 
the  envy  of  his  less  prosperous  neighbors.  His 
plan  of  getting  passports  for  girls  was  an  in- 
vention of  his  own,  by  which  he  cut  off  the 
middlemen  and  saved  all  the  profits  for  himself. 
It  consisted  in  taking  a  death  stricken  slave 
from  a  brothel  on  Dupont  street,  every  time  he 
went  from  San  Francisco  to  Shanghai  and  so 
arranging  it  that  she  did  not  wish  to  return. 
This  was  easy  to  do  for  the  law  of  China  gives 
the  lives  of  females  into  the  hands  of  the 
master,  and  the  steerage  across  was  only  twen- 
ty-five dollars.  He  kept  a  good  lawyer  in  San 
Francisco  and  paid  him  liberally  for  informa- 
tion concerning  the  whys  and  wherefores  of 
such  conduct. 


224  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Ah  Moy  answered  the  description  in  her  sec- 
ond-hand passport  reasonably  well.  That  she 
was  Chinese  any  one  could  see;  that  she  was 
twenty  years  of  age,  happily  no  one  could  deny, 
and  that  she  had  a  mole  on  the  right  cheek  was 
due  to  old  Wang's  skillful  manipulation.  The 
document  upon  which  he  expected  to  land  Wing 
was  signed,  sealed  and  delivered  by  the  recorder 
of  the  .Kwan  Yin  temple.  Taking  all  things 
together,  Quong  Lung  congratulated  himself 
upon  his  good  luck. 

Stepping  out  of  the  chaos  into  which  his  own 
country  had  fallen  and  landing  on  his  feet  in 
San  Francisco  was  a  most  desirable  achieve- 
ment, and  he  walked  up  the  gang  plank  of  the 
Hong  Kong  Maru  with  the  air  of  the  "man 
who  is". 

On  board  the  ship  was  a  mass  of  humanity 
to  stir  the  hardest  heart.  The  liberal  treatment 
of  the  missionary  boards  in  paying  bounties  on 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  225 

all  babies  born  in  China  of  missionary  parents, 
had  brought  forth  fruit,  as  was  evinced  by  the 
numerous  children.  Having  had  Chinese 
nurses  all  their  lives,  some  of  them  protested 
against  the  new  order  of  things  in  language 
ungrammatical,  but  decisive  and  forcible. 
Other  episodes  there  were  to  wring  the  heart; 
dark  faces  in  which  revenge  was  depicted  and 
pale  ones  full  of  sorrow ;  weepings  and  the  pa- 
thetic clinging  of  hands ;  a  millenium  of  holiness 
in  some  and  of  hate  in  others.  The  comming- 
ling of  races  so  characteristic  of  the  open  ports 
of  Asia  was  forcibly  illustrated;  Eurasians  in 
all  shades  and  proportions  of  Asiatic,  mixed 
with  western  blood;  Hindoos,  Arabs,  Sikhs, 
Russians,  all  and  all  loading  the  ship  down  to 
the  gunwale. 

In  the  European  steerage  there  was  scarcely 
standing  room,  but  Quong  Lung  pushed  his 
way  to  the  women's  cabin  and  there  deposited 


226  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

the  two  astonished  girls,  bidding  them  stay 
there  until  he  returned.  He  then  climbed  the 
narrow  iron  stairs  to  the  middle  deck  and  began 
searching  among  the  crew  for  old  acquaint- 
ances. As  he  stepped  under  the  awning,  he 
saw  a  number  of  women  standing  beside  the 
rail,  each  of  whom  held  a  hymn  book  in  her 
hand  and  a  look  of  doomsday  in  her  face.  With 
his  eyes  cast  deep  upon  the  floor,  he  attempted 
to  pass  this  little  group;  but  one  of  them 
plucked  him  by  the  sleeve  and  asked  him  if  he 
"loved  Jesus",  to  which  he  replied  that  he  did, 
but  his  face  darkened  and  he  dove  into  the 
second  cabin  kitchen  where  he  discussed  the 
missionary  question  with  the  cook.  When  he 
saw  an  opportunity  to  pass  unnoticed  he  walked 
hurriedly  toward  the  hatch,  where  the  great 
steel  arm  of  the  crane  was  swinging  load  after 
load  of  baggage  into  the  hold. 

There  he  unexpectedly  encountered  the  eyes 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  227 

of  Henry  Ashman.  The  two  greeted  each 
other  as  men  of  the  world  usually  do  and  passed 
on  to  their  respective  places,  but  Quong  Lung's 
quick  eye  noted  a  change  in  the  face  of  the  mis- 
sionary that  betokened  a  new  man.  So  plainly 
did  he  carry  the  evidence  of  regeneration  that 
the  slave-dealer  involuntarily  assumed  an  atti- 
tude of  respect  toward  him  and,  for  a  brief 
moment,  contrasted  the  mockeries  of  his  own 
life  with  the  virtues  of  more  scrupulous  men 
and  was  a  little  cleansed  from  having  come  in 
contact  with  cleanliness. 

It  was  now  four  o'clock  and  the  ship  was 
nearing  the  start.  The  missionaries  gathered 
on  the  deck  and  sang,  "The  heathen  in  his 
blindness",  and  said  prayers  for  all  who  were 
not  of  their  own  faith.  The  noise  increased, 
the  jar  of  machinery  shook  the  ship  and  Quong 
Lung  slipped  back  to  the  steerage  cabin  to  see 
that  his  girls  were  where  he  had  left  them. 


228  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

He  found  the  place  filled  with  as  many  women 
as  could  find  standing  room  and  later  events 
showed  that  no  two  of  them  spoke  the  same 
language,  which  fact  gave  Quong  Lung  great 
satisfaction,  for  he  shrewdly  reckoned  that  as 
long  as  the  women  could  not  talk  together,  his 
girls  were  not  likely  to  be  interfered  with. 

Soon  afterward  he  went  back  to  consult 
again  with  the  cook  and  he  swore,  until  his 
knowledge  of  English  was  exhausted,  that  he 
had  never  seen  so  many  missionaries  in  his  life. 

"They  talk  too  much  and  ask  too  many  ques- 
tions," he  asserted,  "and  sometimes  they  set 
storms  in  motion  that  are  hard  to  quell." 

His  opinion  was  based  upon  an  experience 
through  which  he  had  passed  in  San  Francisco 
when  some  of  the  women  from  the  Mission  had 
carried  off  one  of  his  girls. 

"They  dignify  it  by  the  name  of  'rescue 
work/  but  it  is  nothing  more  than  kidnapping," 
he  declared. 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  229 

Naturally,  he  hoped  that  none  of  the  women 
in  the  cabin  where  his  girls  were  to  be  confined 
for  twenty-seven  days,  were  in  any  way  con- 
nected with  this  class — a  hope  that  was  some- 
what strengthened  by  the  confusion  of  tongues. 

The  cook  quite  agreed  with  him.  He  had 
attended  a  mission  school,  but  only  for  the  pur- 
pose of  learning  English. 

"My  no  can  chin  chin,"  he  said,  as  they  drank 
and  pledged  eternal  friendship  and  swore  that 
China  was  for  the  Chinese. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

"Some  say  the  nature  of  one  man  is  good  and 
the  nature  of  another  is  bad,  but  I  say  the 
nature  of  all  men  is  good." — Confucius. 

The  first  three  days  of  the  voyage  were  like 
the  first  three  days  of  any  other  sea  voyage, 
the  passengers,  shivering  and  at  times  turning 
grayish  yellow,  sat  irresolutely  about  the  deck. 
When  the  stewardess  came  around  with  the 
regulation  questions,  those  who  could,  smiled 
and  others  demanded  beef  tea.  Qoung  Lung 
was  too  good  a  sailor  to  get  sick ;  he  loafed  and 
picked  dainties  from  the  kettles  of  the  cook  and 
frequently  passed  the  door  of  the  women's 
cabin  but  never  ventured  within. 

By  the  third  day  everything  grew  rapidly 
better.  First  one  and  then  another  was  able  to 
go  on  deck.  And  at  last,  the  two  girls  crawled 


CHAPTER  TWELVE  231 

out  of  their  bunks,  combed  their  hair  and, 
under  the  protection  of  one  of  the  women, 
climbed  the  stairs  to  get  the  morning  air. 
Quong  Lung  saw  them  and  gritted  his  teeth. 

"By  the  five-toed  dragon,"  he  muttered, 
"there  is  a  Salvation  Army  bonnet  and  a  hymn 
book  with  my  two  girls." 

He  glanced  into  the  innocent  blue  eyes  of  the 
woman  as  though  she  had  done  him  an  injury 
and  as  soon  as  he  could  conveniently  lay  hold 
upon  the  girls,  he  took  them  by  the  hand  and 
led  them  to  the  stairs,  saying  in  no  uncertain 
voice : 

"Stay  below  and  keep  away  from  the 
women." 

This  act  brought  upon  him  a  score  or  two  of 
eyes  and  set  a  score  or  two  of  tongues  agoing. 

"I  was  trying  to  help  the  poor  girls,"  com- 
plained she  of  the  bonnet,  "and  the  horrid  old 
Chinaman  took  them  away." 


232  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

''You  must  not  be  discouraged  in  well- 
doing," said  a  sweet-faced  sister,  "sometimes 
it  is  many  days  before  bread  cast  upon  the 
water  returns." 

"But  where  can  he  be  going  with  those  two 
girls,  and  can  he  be  their  father,  or  are  they 
slaves?"  were  questions  that  were  discussed 
and  which  led  to  results  greater  than  any  of 
them  could  foresee. 

Society  finds  its  own  on  ship  board  as  well 
as  otherwhere  and  it  came  about  naturally  that 
missionaries  of  all  creeds  drifted  together. 
Each  morning  they  held  a  prayer  meeting, 
after  which  they  indulged  in  social  talk — no 
better,  no  worse,  than  that  of  others.  They 
managed  to  gather  all  the  available  news,  to 
speculate  upon  it  and  to  draw  conclusions, 
sometimes  correct  and  sometimes  not.  They 
knew  who  favored  missionary  work  and  who 
opposed  it,  and  they  scented  from  afar  off  any 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  233 

who  were  tainted  with  unbelief.  Henry  Ash- 
man was  frequently  with  them;  but  he  was 
naturally  a  silent  man,  and  now  began  to  feel 
out  of  place  in  their  society.  His  interview 
with  the  old  priest  had  shaken  out  of  him  his 
prejudice  against  other  religions  and  caused 
him  to  pause  and  wonder  whether  the  eastern 
peoples  had  not  been  nourished  upon  some  sort 
of  spiritual  food,  as  yet  unknown  to  the 
Christian.  He  recalled  that  the  old  priest  had 
spoken  of  Jesus  with  love  and  reverence.  In 
a  measure  this  had  disarmed  him  so  that  he  felt 
no  inclination  to  take  part  in  the  conversation 
of  his  co-workers. 

Thus  matters  stood  until  one  morning  an 
elderly  man  who  was  affectionately  called 
"Brother  Jones",  led  the  prayer-meeting. 
Brother  Jones  had  a  cough  and  an  increasing 
family,  and  had  dabbled  a  little  in  profitable 
trade.  He  reconciled  himself  to  such  acts  as 


234  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

less  pious  people  call  custom  house  evasions  on 
the  ground  that  a  right  application  of  the  pro- 
ceeds sanctified  what  in  other  men  would  be 
sin.  In  his  prayer  he  informed  the  All-wise 
One  that  the  good  work  would  go  right  on  in 
China,  despite  the  Boxers,  and  expressed  the 
opinion  that  the  Christian  religion  was  suited 
to  all  times  and  to  all  places. 

Soon  after  he  had  finished  speaking,  Quong 
Lung,  leading  the  two  slave  girls,  passed  by 
and  Brother  Jones  addressed  him  in  the  dialect 
of  the  Quong  Tung  province.  It  was  a  surprise 
to  Quong  Lung  to  find  a  missionary  who  could 
speak  the  language  of  his  own  country,  so  he 
entered  into  a  conversation  with  him,  which 
ended  in  an  invitation  to  leave  the  girls  with 
one  of  the  ladies. 

The  lady  referred  to  was  a  Presbyterian  mis- 
sionary in  whose  face  every  line  spoke  of  good. 
Ah  Moy  felt  it  and  placed  her  defenseless  little 


CHAPTER  TWELVE  235 

hand  in  the  proffered  one  and  sat  down  by  her 
side.  Quong  Lung  was  now  so  hedged  in  that 
he  felt  bound  to  make  an  explanation,  so  he 
boldly  said  that  Ah  Moy  was  his  daughter  and 
born  in  California.  He  knew  very  well  that 
without  some  plausible  story,  the  question 
would  naturally  arise  as  to  how  he  expected  to 
land  in  San  Francisco  with  the  two  girls. 

But  it  was  an  unlucky  moment  when  he  con- 
descended to  explain  matters  to  Brother  Jones, 
for  that  gentleman  had  lived  many  years  in 
China  and  recognized  in  the  face  of  Quong 
Lung  that  unmistakeable  something  which 
stamps  itself  upon  a  Cantonese  Chinaman, 
while  in  Ah  Moy's  face  he  saw  as  plainly 
the  marks  of  the  northern  bred.  This  dis- 
crepancy of  testimony,  at  once  gave  rise  to  the 
suspicion  that  both  girls  were  slaves.  Brother 
Jones  communicated  his  idea  to  the  women  as 
soon  as  the  Chinaman  was  beyond  hearing  and 


236  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

from  that  moment  the  horoscope  of  the  slave 
dealer  told  a  troublesome  story. 

It  was  useless  now  to  try  to  escape  the  mis- 
sionaries; they  swarmed  about  him  and  ex- 
pressed great  interest  in  the  girls ;  they  led  them 
on  deck  and  talked  to  them  in  that  wonderful 
sign  language  which  nature  provides  for  all 
her  children;  when  the  weather  was  fair,  they 
leaned  together  over  the  rails,  to  see  the  water 
churned  into  frothy  yeast,  or  peeped  into  the 
engine  room  where  each  throb  of  the  bright 
machinery  was  bringing  them  nearer  to  their 
destination. 

Among  those  who  walked  and  talked  with 
the  girls  was  Dr.  Kate  Richardson,  who  had 
been  stationed,  as  a  medical  missionary,  in  one 
of  the  open  ports  of  China.  Her  eye  was  the 
trained  eye  of  science  and  she  knew  at  once 
that  into  Wing's  veins  had  been  poured  a 
stream  of  fierce  and  ungoverned  passion. 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  237 

"Poor  little  waif,"  she  said,  "cast  upon  so 
stormy  a  sea  without  sail  or  rudder;  it  is  to 
such  as  these  that  the  true  missionary  should 
go." 

"Yes,  yes,"  said  she  of  the  motherly  heart, 
"but  can  you  tell  us  how  to  help  these  unfor- 
tunates ?  It  is  easy  to  bring  Ah  Moy  to  Jesus ; 
but  with  the  Eurasian,  it  is  quite  a  different 
question." 

"Ah  Moy,"  said  the  doctor  a  little  sharply, 
"is  no  more  in  need  of  Jesus  than  are  the  birds. 
It  is  Wing  that  needs  our  help.  By  her  father's 
blood  she  is  fairly  stamped  as  one  with  us. 
Over  her  floats  the  banner  and  pennant  of  the 
Aryan  race, — the  race  par  excellence,  the  race 
that  advances  and  still  advances;  but  alas,  the 
race  with  the  most  ungoverned  passions.  I  do 
not  mean  by  this  that  Wing  is  bad,  or  destined 
to  become  bad.  But  if  left  to  herself,  she  will 
naturally  find  her  way  to  the  class  whom  we 


238  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

are  wont  to  call  'fallen'.  This  child,"  continued 
the  doctor,  putting  her  arm  about  Wing,  "is  of 
value  to  the  world  only  as  she  is  protected.  I 
think  it  was  Homer  who  said  that  a  boy  had 
better  be  unborn  than  untaught  and  this  is 
equally  true  of  girls." 

"Well,  doctor,  you  have  diagnosed  the  case, 
now  can  ycu  prescribe  for  it,"  asked  one  of  the 
ladies. 

"Yes,"  replied  the  doctor,  "if  I  had  authority 
over  her  I  should  teach  her  to  control  her  phy- 
sical impulses  and  above  all  I  should  teach  her 
the  meaning  of  those  emotions  and  imaginings 
that  so  sway  her.  Daughters  of  immoral  men 
are  great  sufferers,  for  they  are  constantly 
driven  by  unseen  hands  into  vices  that  sap  the 
brain  and  weaken  the  body.  But  I  insist  that 
all  this  can  be  overcome  and  that  to  help  them 
do  so  is  a  service  of  love  which  we  owe  hu- 
manity." 


CHAPTER  TWELVE  239 

Henry  Ashman  had  now  joined  the  group 
and  was  listening  to  the  words  of  the  doctor 
with  great  interest.  Not  since  his  visit  to  the 
old  priest  in  the  temple  had  he  felt  so  stirred, 
and  when  the  doctor  added, 

"Buddhism  has  done  more  than  Christianity 
to  teach  her  children  sex-wisdom,"  he  could 
not  abstain  from  expressing  his  hearty  ap- 
proval. In  his  heart  he  felt  that  the  old  priest 
was  the  savior  who  had  re-shaped  his  life  and 
he  was  glad  to  learn  that  others  were  interested 
in  the  same  line  of  thought. 

The  Salvation  Army  missionary,  however, 
not  comprehending  the  thread  of  the  argument, 
protested,  saying  that  missionaries  who  could 
endorse  anything  in  Buddhism  were  in  dan- 
ger of  losing  the  true  light. 

"That  subject  is  not  under  discussion," 
replied  the  doctor,  "but  it  is  a  fact  beyond  dis- 
pute that  Chinese  children  are  trained  in  the 


240  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

great  duty  of  self-control.  If  our  own  people 
understood  this  subject  better,  we  should  not 
find  half-breed  children  scattered  from  Dan  to 
Beersheba  and  left  without  protection,  as  this 
poor  child  has  been." 

Wing  felt  the  magnetism  of  the  doctor's  em- 
brace and  crept  nearer  to  her  with  a  sheltered 
feeling  such  as  she  had  never  experienced 
before. 

"This  strange  foreign  woman,"  she  said  to 
Ah  Moy  when  they  were  again  alone,  "under- 
stands me  and  I  love  her." 

During  these  long  morning  talks  of  the  mis- 
sionaries, Quong  Lung  walked  the  deck  and 
kept  near  the  girls;  but  he  had  now  ceased  to 
interfere.  To  counteract  this  influence,  how- 
ever, he  looked  after  their  bodily  comforts  with 
all  the  consideration  which  a  man  gives  to  good 
horses.  When  he  found  that  the  foreign  food 
was  distateful,  he  made  raids  upon  the  com- 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  241 

missary  department  for  such  things  as  the  Ori- 
ental palate  craves.  These  dainties  he  cooked 
himself  upon  a  pocket  stove  and  dished  them 
out  as  the  girls  had  need.  Through  all  his  con- 
versation he  was  careful  to  impress  Ah  Moy 
with  the  idea  that  California  was  a  country 
where  people  lived  and  luxuriated,  and  that  as 
soon  as  they  arrived,  she  would  become  the 
wife  of  a  rich  merchant  who  had  given  him  a 
commission  for  one. 

The  water  remained  a  miracte  of  beauty ;  blue 
met  blue  on  the  horizon  line  for  days  at  a  time ; 
occasionally  a  whale  spouted  in  the  distance  or 
an  albatross  swept  the  air  close  to  the  rail,  but 
save  for  these  little  incidents  the  solitude  of  an 
unbroken  sea  contrasted,  day  by  day,  with  the 
restlessness  of  the  passengers  on  board  the 
great  ship.  For  eighteen  days  the  scene  was 
the  same,  when  suddenly  an  outline  of  dim 
green  and  a  long  line  of  white  surf  crept  along 


242  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

the  horizon.  Quong  Lung's  quick  eye  was  the 
first  to  see  it;  he  called  the  attention  of  the 
girls  and  pointed  to  a  jewel-like  row  of  islands 
set  in  an  ever-changing,  opal  sea.  For  hours 
they  watched  it  grow  into  land,  studded  with 
groups  of  palms  and  fields  of  sugar  cane,  while 
little  dots  on  its  slopes  told  of  homes  nestling 
beneath  the  foliage. 

This  was  the  Eden  they  saw  from  a  distance ; 
but  when  the  ship  was  tied  up  to  the  wharf,  a 
very  different  story  was  revealed.  Having 
joined  the  sisterhood  of  states,  the  Hawaiian 
Islands  presented  a  practical  illustration  of 
what  western  civilization  can  do  in  a  short  time. 
Honolulu  repoiced  in  a  political  "boss",  a  chain 
gang  and  a  "Holiness  Hotel."  Quong  Lung  at- 
tempted to  go  ashore;  but  was  informed  by  a 
policeman  that  Chinamen  were  not  allowed  on 
the  wharf. 

The  missionaries,   however,   were  on  their 


CHAPTER  TWELVE  243 

own  stamping  ground.  They  were  met  by  an 
eager  throng,  escorted  ashore  and  entertained 
with  fruits  and  flowers  beyond  compare.  On 
the  third  day  they  returned  heavy-laden  with 
all  the  luxuries  of  a  semi-tropical  climate.  Out 
of  their  abundance  Ah  Moy  and  Wing  were 
bountifully  supplied,  at  which  they  marveled 
and  were  happy.  That  night,  under  the  stars, 
a  white  trail  was  left  on  the  smooth  surface  of 
the  sea  and  in  the  morning  the  ship  was  again 
out  of  sight  of  land. 

Only  a  week  now  remained  before  the  end 
of  the  voyage;  tailor-made  suits,  to  adorn  the 
women,  came  out  of  trunks;  Japanese  kimonas 
gave  place  to  shirt  waists;  the  male  members 
of  the  missionary  staff  had  their  queues  cut  off 
and,  in  deference  to  western  taste,  donned  coats 
and  vests;  the  Japanese  limped  about  in  shoes 
and  even  Quong  Lung  brought  out  shining  new 
trousers  for  his  girls. 


244  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

The  ship  underwent  such  a  clearing  up  as 
no  ship  ever  receives  until  she  is  nearing  port. 
Tattered  flags  were  mended  and  masts  painted, 
floors  scrubbed  and  brass  polished.  Through 
the  liberality  of  the  steamship  company  hun- 
dreds of  labels  bearing  the  word  "Disinfected" 
were  scattered  among  the  passengers  with  the 
advice  to  "stick  them  onto  everything."  This 
both  saint  and  sinner  did  and  no  health  officer 
could  suspect  the  presence  of  cholera  or  plague. 
The  dreadful  yellow  flag,  however,  still  held 
its  place  and  when  quarantine  waters  were 
reached,  the  ship  halted  like  a  human  thing  for 
the  inspectors  who  very  soon  boarded  her  and 
proceeded  to  look  for  symptoms  of  plague. 
Well-worn  thermometers  were  thrust  into  sus- 
picious looking  mouths,  and  eyelids  turned  back 
while  doctors  peered  with  critical  exactness  into 
their  blooody  depths.  But  the  clean  white  labels 
and  the  fact  that  both  sick  and  well  declared 


CHAPTER  ELEVEN  245 

themselves  "all  right"  carried  the  day,  and  to- 
ward night  the  yellow  flag  came  down  and  the 
ship  slid  gracefully  up  to  her  pier  at  the  foot 
of  Brennan  street. 

Here  she  was  again  boarded  by  officials  in 
blue  uniforms  who  seemed  to  be  merely  loiter- 
ing about,  but  who  were  in  reality  taking  close 
notice  of  all  on  board.  These  men  Quong  Lung 
pointed  out  to  the  girls,  at  the  same  time  hand- 
ing them  the  documents  upon  which  he  ex- 
pected to  get  them  ashore,  and  once  again 
impressed  upon  them  the  necessity  of  saying 
that  they  were  born  in  California. 

Although  of  a  race  whose  greatest  accom- 
plishment is  "to  keep  the  face",  Quong  Lung 
showed  signs  of  worry.  The  ship  was  now  dis- 
charging her  just  and  her  unjust  into  the  streets 
of  San  Francisco;  the  second  cabin  steward 
had  gathered  the  Chinese  into  a  squad  and  was 
waiting  until  the  European  passengers  were 


246  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

off,  to  marshal  them  in  double  quick  time  to 
the  gang  plank.  In  half  an  hour  the  human 
stream  began  to  thin  and  Quong  Lung  turned 
to  the  girls  and  bade  them  be  ready.  As  it  was 
near  night  he  shrewdly  reckoned  that  the  cus- 
tom officers  would  be  getting  hungry  and  per- 
haps that  fact  might  enhance  his  chances  of 
passing  without  very  close  scrutiny.  The  min- 
utes seemed  long  to  him,  but  at  last  the  steward 
gave  the  signal  and  the  Chinese  fell  into  line. 
Each  as  he  passed  presented  his  passport  and 
answered  such  questions  as  were  put  to  him. 
The  officers  recognized  Quong  Lung  as  a 
merchant  whom  they  had  often  seen  on  board 
and  let  him  pass  without  even  looking  at  his 
papers.  But  when  the  girls  stepped  timidly 
behind  him,  that  evil  genius,  Brother  Jones, 
whispered  something  into  the  officer's  ear,  and 
he  immediately  motioned  the  girls  back  and 
the  steward  led  them  to  one  side. 


CHAPTER  TWELVE  247 

After  the  crowd  had  disappeared  the  officers 
called  the  girls  forward  again  and  demanded 
their  passports.  The  description  in  Ah  Moy's 
seemed  fairly  correct  but  suspicion  was  aroused 
by  the  fact  that  the  mole  on  her  cheek  was 
slightly  off  color.  When  they  asked  her  where 
she  was  born  she  was  too  frightened  to  recall 
the  word  "California",  which  had  been  so  care- 
fully drilled  into  her  memory  and  only  stood 
with  the  stolid  look  of  a  Chinese  who  does  not 
understand.  The  officer  folded  her  passport 
and  handed  it  back  with  a  shake  of  the  head, 
at  the  same  time  reaching  for  the  transcript  of 
the  temple  record  which  Wing  held. 

"Here  is  another  case  out  of  the  ordinary," 
said  he,  "I  do  not  think  we  have  ever  had  a 
Chinese  woman  before  who  claimed  to  be  the 
daughter  of  an  American.  It  may  be  all  right 
but  I  do  not  wish  to  take  the  responsibility." 

After  a  short  conversation  the  officers  de- 


248  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

cided  that  they  could  do  nothing  except  keep 
the  girls  on  board  until  another  day  and  then 
give  them  a  new  hearing. 

Quong  Lung  requested  the  privilege  of  go- 
ing back  to  speak  to  them;  but  his  request  was 
denied  and  he  walked  wrathfully  away  toward 
Chinatown. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

"The  duration  of  ill-gotten  wealth  is  as  snow 
on  which  hot  water  is  poured.  The  possession 
of  land,  improperly  obtained,  endures  as  long 
as  the  sand  heaped  up  by  the  waves." 

— Chinese  Moral  Maxim. 

Chinatown  was  all  agog  over  Quong  Lung's 
failure  to  land  his  girls.  The  president  of  the 
Ho  Wang  company  sent  out  invitations  to  its 
business  men  to  meet  in  the  hall  on  Crocker 
alley  and  talk  the  matter  over,  while  on  the 
streets  little  knots  of  men  hinted  at  conspiracy. 
The  room  where  they  were  invited  to  meet  was 
one  in  which  the  Chinese  municipal  council  was 
wont  to  assemble,  but  on  occasions  like  the 
present  it  was  available  for  small  parties  of 
men  who  had  important  business  to  adjust. 
Its  furniture  consisted  of  straight-back  teak 


260  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

wood  chairs,  a  long  table  upon  which  was  tea 
and  opium,  tobacco  and  whiskey — even  the 
whiskey  of  the  foreign  devil,  which  they  liked 
better  than  Sam  Shu.  Against  the  wall  divans 
with  wooden  pillows  attested  to  the  luxurious 
habits  of  those  who  gathered  here.  In  an  in- 
cense burner  before  the  God  of  Prosperity  a 
hundred  joss  sticks  attested  to  the  religious  zeal 
of  the  visitors.  At  the  far  end  of  the  room  was 
a  screen  upon  which  was  inscribed,  in  softly 
shaded  ideographs,  verses  from  the  Confucian 
code. 

This  pious  appearing  decoration,  however, 
served  another  purpose  than  that  of  teaching 
morality,  for  it  was  hung  at  the  top  with  hinges 
that  swung  out  and  concealed  an  opening  in  the 
wall  through  which  any  number  of  persons 
might  disappear  and,  like  birds  that  swim  un- 
der water,  come  to  the  surface  a  long  way 
from  the  place  where  they  went  down.  This 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  251 

arrangement  was  necessary  on  account  of  the 
frequent  visits  of  the  police,  on  which  occasions 
it  was  thought  better  that  the  hall  should  be 
found  unoccupied. 

At  the  street  entrance  was  a  sentinel  who 
could  communicate,  by  pulling  a  wire,  with 
another  sentinel  on  the  inside, — once  for  a 
member  of  the.  Ho  Wang  company,  twice  for 
an  unfriendly  tong  and  three  times  for  any 
suspicious  act  of  the  policeman  whose  eagle  eye 
was  frequently  turned  in  that  direction. 

It  was  getting  late  and  all  was  quiet,  so  the 
guard  on  the  inside  pulled  a  piece  of  roast  pork 
from  his  sleeve  and  was  about  to  eat  when  the 
bell  rang  once.  He  slipped  the  pork  back  into 
place  and  admitted  four  men,  of  middle  age  and 
prosperous  appearance. 

The  first  was  Ah  King,  straight  as  an  arrow, 
shrewd  as  a  fox  and  strong  in  the  faith  that 
Chinatown  was  for  the  Chinese.  He  wore  a 


252  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

green  silk  blouse,  decorated  under  his  queue 
with  a  grease  spot,  the  size  of  a  breakfast  plate. 
Ho  Lung  followed  on  his  heels  and  answered 
to  the  same  description, — a  little  deeper  con- 
centration of  thought  had  turned  his  eyes  a 
little  more  toward  the  nose ;  a  little  more  taste  in 
the  selection  of  his  silken  trousers  had  given 
him  a  superior  air;  but  far  underlying  all  sur- 
face appearances,  was  the  real  Chinaman  who 
lives  forever  and  changes  not.  The  other  two 
men  followed  in  single  file,  and  the  odor  of  the 
Far  East  came  in  with  them  and  sat  with  them 
at  the  table. 

The  little  party  talked  about  the  affairs  of 
the  Ho  Wang  company,  the  latest  news  from 
home,  the  price  of  vegetables  and  so  forth,  and 
then  drifted  off  upon  the  exclusion  act. 

"Our  friend  Quong  Lung  has  had  a  stormy 
voyage,"  remarked  Ah  King,  as  he  poured  hot 
water  into  a  padded  teapot. 


CHAPTER  TWELVE  253 

"Yes,"  assented  Ho  Lung,  "the  God  of  Fate 
has  brought  him  into  trouble." 

Just  here  the  third  voice  piped  up,  "The 
signs  were  not  right  when  he  sailed.  A  man 
should  not  go  to  sea  when  the  sign  of  the  zodiac 
is  in  Taurus." 

"Oh,  I  do  not  concern  myself  so  much  about 
the  signs,"  said  Ah  King,  "living  in  San  Fran- 
cisco for  ten  years  makes  a  man  begin  to  doubt 
them,  but  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the  times 
were  inauspicious  The  trouble  with  the  Boxers 
drove  so  many  missionaries  on  board  that 
Quong  Lung  could  not  keep  aloof  and  as  a 
result  they  have  brought  him  into  trouble." 

"Yes,"  agreed  Ho  Lung,  "but  I  still  believe 
that  the  Gods  have  much  to  do  with  our 
troubles.  We  all  lie  bound  upon  the  wheel  of 
fate." 

After  this  remark  there  was  silence  for  a 
time  and  then  conversation  turned  upon  poli- 


254  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

tics — the  politics  of  Chinatown,  a  brand  quite 
distinct  from  that  of  the  white  man;  a  wheel 
within  a  wheel,  so  to  speak,  which  goes  one 
way  while  the  main  wheel  goes  another.  They 
had  not  entered  very  fully  upon  the  subject, 
however,  when  a  party  of  five,  all  young  men 
and  of  slightly  modified  type,  came  in.  These 
were  American  born ;  had  been  educated  in  the 
public  schools  and  attended  the  mission  church. 
They  swore  in  English  but  returned  to  the 
mother  tongue  to  express  shades  of  meaning 
not  within  the  scope  of  their  adopted  language. 
"Pidgen"  they  rigidly  ignored,  as  they  also  did 
the  western  style  of  dress.  Garments  cut  to 
*how  the  outline  of  the  figure  were  as  much  an 
indecency  to  them  as  they  had  been  to  their 
fathers.  They  took  seats  and  as  Quong  Lung 
had  not  yet  arrived,  they  listened  respectfully 
to  the  conversation  of  their  elders. 

"Business  is  good,"  resumed  Ah  King,  "the 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  255 

books  of  the  company  show  that  at  the  New 
Year's  festival,  every  man  had  money  to  burn 
to  his  ancestors." 

"Yes,"  said  Fo  Lung,  who  kept  an  employ- 
ment office,  "the  demand  for  labor  is  greater 
than  the  supply." 

"Ah  yes,"  said  Ah  King,  "it  is  too  difficult 
for  our  people  to  get  here;  the  United  States 
government  discriminates  against  us.  The  ex- 
clusion act,  the  high  tariff  and  the  demand  for 
the  open  door,  is  a  trinity  of  inconsistencies. 
The  duty  on  pickled  eggs  is  now  five  cents  a 
dozen  and  the  duty  on  dried  mushrooms  is 
equally  high." 

Just  then  another  party  of  Quong  Lung's 
friends,  among  whom  was  the  "peace  talker", 
Ah  Foon,  arrived  and  seated  themselves  at  the 
table.  Ah  Foon  was  a  character  unique  in 
Chinatown.  Whenever  there  was  a  difference 
of  opinion  among  his  countrymen,  he  threw 


256  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

himself  into  the  breach  for  the  purpose  of  ad- 
justing it.  On  occasions  of  serious  rupture,  he 
had  been  known  to  prostrate  himself,  first  to 
one  side  and  then  to  the  other,  in  the  interests 
of  peace.  Among  Chinamen  he  seldom  failed 
to  make  amicable  arrangements;  but  he  had 
learned,  after  some  experience,  that  the  white 
man  adjusts  his  differences  in  quite  another 
way.  To  their  methods  he  had,  therefore,  given 
considerable  attention.  He  had  found  that  tes- 
timony was  an  important  item  in  settling 
disputes;  and  had  frequently  furnished  his  at- 
torney such  evidence  as  was  required  to  win 
his  case.  In  short  he  had  become  so  skillful 
in  this  way  that  he  only  needed  a  clear  idea  of 
what  was  wanted  to  be  able  to  produce  it.  Es- 
pecially had  he  looked  into  habeas  corpus 
procedure  and  felt  a  degree  of  confidence  that 
he  could  supply  the  kind  of  testimony  required 
by  the  court. 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  257 

"What  thinkest  thou  about  Quong  Lung's 
getting  his  girls  ashore?"  asked  Ho  Lung  of 
Ah  Foon,  as  the  conversation  lagged. 

"I  hope  there  will  be  no  trouble,"  replied  he, 
"there  are  several  ways  to  arrange  it.  If  a  good 
man  should  be  on  the  wharf  in  the  morning,  it 
will  be  an  easy  matter ;  if  not,  he  must  go  to  the 
court  of  the  white  devil.  In  these  courts  it 
often  happens  that  the  wisest  cannot  hold  his 
own  with  the  most  ignorant,  but  we  must  meet 
that  state  of  things  by  resorting  to  such  tactics 
as  our  attorney  advises." 

Ah  Kee  still  suspended  judgment.  He  had 
left  the  fatherland  but  a  short  time  before,  ar- 
rived in  Canada  and  thence  found  his  way  by 
slow  degrees  to  San  Francisco. 

The  next  subject  that  came  under  discus- 
sion was  the  price  of  girls. 

"Why  there  is  so  much  trouble  about  getting 
our  women  folk  here,  is  a  mystery  to  me,"  said 


258  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

Ho  Lung,  "the  last  wife  I  bought  cost  me 
twelve  hundred  dollars,  and  when  Quong  Lung 
gets  his  little  beauty  ashore,  he  will  probably 
want  as  much  as  two  thousand  for  her.  In 
China  one  can  get  all  the  girls  he  wants  for  one 
or  two  hundred  apiece.  It  is  this  outrageous 
exclusion  law  that  makes  it  so  hard  to  get 


wives." 


To  the  surprise  of  the  elderly  men,  a  dissent- 
ing voice  was  now  raised.  Hi  Su,  one  of  the 
young  men,  arose  to  his  feet  and  said, 

"I  respect  the  ways  of  my  ancestors  and  I 
love  the  fatherland;  but  I  believe  it  is  time  for 
us  to  learn  to  obey  the  laws  of  our  adopted 
country.  I  have  but  one  wife  and  I  think  the 
buying  of  slaves  to  be  a  sin.  I  also  obey  the 
municipal  council  of  Chinatown  so  long  as  it 
does  not  come  in  conflict  with  the  laws  of  the 
state, — but  further  than  that,  I  do  not  go." 

"Yes,"  chimed  in  Sam  Sing,  another  of  the 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  259 

young  men,  "I  also  have  but  one  wife  and  I 
send  my  daughters  to  school,  just  the  same  as 
I  do  my  sons." 

These  sentiments  of  the  young  men  were 
regarded  by  their  elders  as  evidence  that 
loyalty  to  the  fatherland  was  fading  away,  and 
that  the  habits  of  the  grimy  barbarian  were  be- 
coming rooted  in  their  lives.  They  meditated 
for  a  time  on  what  seemed  to  them  the  retro- 
gression of  their  fellows,  after  which  Ho  Lung 
rose  to  the  occasion. 

"Can  love  of  home  be  like  the  iove  of  a  child 
for  a  butterfly?  Have  the  ages  written  their 
story  in  lines  of  soft  repose  upon  the  China- 
man's face,  only  to  be  wiped  out  as  footsteps 
out  of  sand  by  an  incoming  tide?  Does  the 
lifting  up  of  the  hands  to  the  ancestral  shrine 
mean  nothing  to  us  because  we  are  away  from 
home?  Young  Chinamen  who  find  themselves 
drifting  from  the  customs  of  their  fathers, 


260  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

should  bow  their  heads  and  pay  reverence  to  the 
nation  that  has  lived  to  see  all  others  take  their 
places  among  the  dead." 

For  some  moments  after  this  burst  of  elo- 
quence a  deep  silence  pervaded  the  room;  the 
incense  lay  in  sheets  along  the  wall,  and  no 
one  seemed  equal  to  the  occasion,  but  soon  Lo 
Ling  arose  and  recounted  some  reminiscences 
of  the  fatherland. 

"At  home  the  old  father  and  mother  live 
in  the  house  and  the  sons  and  all  the  sons' 
wives  take  care  of  them.  Here  sarcrts  and 
grandparents  have  no  place ;  they  are  not  rever- 
enced by  their  daughters-in-law." 

Silenced  by  this  high  morality,  the  whole 
party  dreamed  again  of  home  and  friends  and 
native  land. 

The  arrival  of  Quong  Lung  aroused  them 
and  brought  them  to  a  realization  of  the  duties 
of  the  hour.  Blessed  with  the  marvelous  capa- 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  261 

city  of  his  race  to  adjust  itself  to  all  the  condi- 
tions of  life,  Quong  Lung  had  gone,  upon  his 
arrival  to  a  barber  shop  and  had  his  head 
shaven,  his  queue  lengthened  and  his  trousers 
pressed.  No  sign  told  of  the  storm  that  raged 
within  him,  no  shadow  lingered  to  proclaim  his 
discomfort.  The  most  scrutinizing  could  only 
see  the  pleasure  of  a  man  who,  after  long  voy- 
aging, had  arrived  in  port. 

When  the  sentinel  at  the  door  announced 
him,  each  member  of  the  party  arose  and  court- 
eously inquired  after  his  welfare.  For  some  he 
had  messages,  for  others  packages  and  for  all 
the  kindly  greeting  of  a  well-bred  man.  No 
attempt  was  made  by  him  to  arouse  sympathy 
or  to  introduce  the  subject  nearest  his  heart.  A 
delightful  evening  was  spent  and  at  three 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  the  guests  took  their 
departure. 

Ah   Foon,   the   peace   talker,    however,    re- 


262 

mained  at  the  side  of  Quong  Lung.  Left  to 
themselves,  the  two  men  waived  ceremony  and 
began  in  earnest  the  business  of  the  night. 

"Be  seated,  noble  brother,"  said  Quong 
Lung,  as  he  drew  a  chair  to  the  table,  "be 
seated;  it  is  good  to  feel  thee  near.  All  is  well 
with  thee,  I  hope  ?" 

"All  is  well,  thanks  to  Ten  Wang,"  replied 
Ah  Foon. 

"Thou  hast  heard  of  the  little  episode  at  the 
ship  as  I  attempted  to  land  my  slaves  ?" 

"Yes,"  quoth  Ah  Foon,  "heard  it  with  sor- 
row ;  it  is  an  unfortunate  affair.  The  exclusion 
act  makes  it  difficult  for  us  to  gather  our  fami- 
lies about  us,  in  this  land  of  the  free." 

"Yes,  the  law  of  the  white  man  is  directed 
against  the  Mongolian,"  replied  Quong  Lung. 

"I  fear  thou  art  correct,  most  noble  brother," 
assented  Ah  Foon. 

"The  business  in  which  I  am  engaged  has  the 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  263 

sanction  of  our  own  people,  as  thou  knowest, 
but  the  western  man  hampers  us  and  makes  it 
necessary  that  we  meet  him  as  best  we  can.  My 
attorney  advises  me  that  the  landing  of  the 
girls  is  now  a  matter  of  testimony.  The  mem- 
bers of  the  Ho  Wang  company  are  sworn,  as 
thou  knowest,  to  stand  together  and  give  bold 
counterstrokes  to  all  who  persecute  them.  Here 
is  Sam  Shu,  let  us  drink  to  the  confusion  of  the 
white  man's  laws." 

They  drank  and  drank  again  and  pledged 
eternal  friendship.  Then  Quong  Lung  drew  a 
gold  piece  from  his  purse  and  offered  it  to  Ah 
Foon,  saying, 

"Bestow  it  upon  whomsoever  thou  knowest 
to  be  in  need,  that  the  Gods  may  see  that  we 
have  no  evil  in  our  hearts." 

"No,  no,  the  coin  I  will  not  accept,"  said  Ah 
Foon,  "but  if  I  can  be  of  service,  thou  knowest 
I  shall  be  most  willing." 


264  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"It  is  to  thee  that  I  look  for  assistance,"  said 
Quong  Lung. 

"Has  your  attorney,  the  white  devil,  informed 
you  what  the  law  requires  you  to  prove?"  ques- 
tioned Ah  Foon,  as  he  proceeded  to  light  more 
joss  sticks. 

"Yes,"  replied  Quong  Lung,  "we  must  con- 
form to  the  language  of  the  exclusion  act, 
which  simply  requires  us  to  prove  that  Ah 
Moy  was  born  in  the  United  States.  My  as- 
tute counsel  says  there  will  be  no  trouble  about 
landing  the  half-breed." 

"And  what  is  the  price  thou  wouldst  pay  for 
this  testimony?" 

"Such  as  is  commensurate  with  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  case,"  replied  Quong  Lung.  "Is  it 
sufficient  if  I  return  to  thee  the  note  that  I  hold, 
for  one  hundred  dollars?" 

"The  note,  I  would  fain  pay  in  coin,"  said 
Ah  Foon. 


CHAPTER  THIRTEEN  265 

"Then  you  must  name  your  price  and  not  be 
too  hard  on  a  man  who  is  in  trouble,"  said 
Quong  Lung. 

"It  is  a  serious  business  and  I  would  not 
mention  less  than  two  hundred  dollars,"  an- 
swered the  peace  talker. 

"What  thou  wilt  do,  thou  wilt  do,"  said 
Quong  Lung,  and  they  filled  their  pipes  and 
drank  again  to  the  confusion  of  the  white  man's 
laws. 

It  was  near  daybreak  when  they  left  the 
building  with  a  mutual  understanding  to  meet 
at  the  wharf  at  nine  o'clock. 

At  the  mission  house  on  Jackson  street  there 
was  also  night  work  on  hand.  Upon  leaving 
the  ship,  Brother  Jones  had  gone  straight  to 
this  place  and  informed  the  inmates  of  the  sit- 
uation at  the  wharf.  He  believed  the  girls  to 
be  slaves  and  with  a  well-intentioned  aggres- 
siveness, he  called  upon  his  co-workers  to  swear 


266  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

a  new  oath,  even  an  oath  to  rescue  the  slave 
girls.  As  soon  as  he  described  Quong  Lung, 
they  all  understood  that  they  had  a  foe  worthy 
of  their  steel.  Many  an  encounter  had  they 
had  with  him,  and  many  a  time  had  he  slipped 
through  the  meshes  of  the  law.  Although  it 
was  long  past  office  hours,  they  sent  for  their 
attorney  and  made  such  preparations  as  the  exi- 
gencies of  the  case  required. 

Brother  Jones  accepted  the  hospitality  of  the 
home  for  the  night,  and  as  the  clock  in  the  old 
church  tower  was  striking  two,  his  light  flick- 
ered out. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

"Though  the  current  be  swift, 
It  can  ne'er  carry  off, 

The  moonbeam  that  lights  up  its  bed. 
Though  the  mountain  be  high, 
Still  it  cannot  arrest, 
The  fast  flying  cloud  overhead." 

— Lu  Chu  Chi. 

Not  until  the  passengers  had  all  left  the  ship 
did  the  girls  begin  to  realize  their  situation. 
For  a  time  they  looked,  wonder-eyed,  into  the 
desolation  about  them  and  then  they  went  back 
to  the  second  cabin  which  was  to  them  the  most 
home-like  spot  in  the  great  vessel.  Even  the 
packages  that  had  filled  all  of  the  available 
space  would  now  have  been  a  welcome  sight, 
but  one  by  one  these  had  been  carried  away 
until  now  the  only  familiar  object  was  the  pile 
of  Chinese  coffins  just  opposite  the  port  hole. 


268  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"I  wish  we  were  shut  up  in  one  of  them," 
said  Ah  Moy,  "then  we  should  be  sure  of  get- 
ting back  to  lie  with  our  ancestors  in  the 
family  burial  ground." 

"Oh  dear  no,  that  would  be  too  dreadful!" 
exclaimed  Wing.  But  they  were  too  much 
alarmed  for  much  conversation  and  sat  in 
gloomy  silence  until  the  steward  brought  them 
supper.  He  laughed  at  them  and  joked  about 
Quong  Lung's  mishap,  as  though  it  were  an 
every-day  occurrence  for  two  unhappy  girls  to 
be  left  alone  on  a  great  ship. 

"Come  and  take  a  walk  on  deck,"  he  said, 
when  they  refused  the  food  he  offered.  But 
they  shook  their  heads  and  very  soon  went 
frightened  to  bed. 

The  morning  dawned  cold  and  windy  and 
the  fog  horn  bellowed  its  hoarse  warnings  to 
the  children  of  the  sea.  The  crew  staggered 
back,  somewhat  the  worse  for  having  spent  a 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  369 

night  on  shore,  and  everything  on  the  ship 
showed  signs  of  disorder. 

A  few  Chinamen  came  early  to  the  wharf 
to  select  boxes  and  bundles,  but  always  went 
back  before  the  girls  could  get  a  word  with 
them. 

"What  shall  we  do,"  said  Wing,  "if  no  one 
comes  for  us?" 

"Alas,  I  cannot  answer,"  returned  Ah  Moy. 

"Do  you  suppose  they  will  take  us  back  to 
China,  or  will  they  throw  us  overboard  to  be 
eaten  by  fishes,"  again  queried  Wing. 

Before  them  was  a  bowl  of  rice  that  had  been 
left  by  the  steward  and  opposite  it  a  paper  joss 
which  one  of  their  countrymen  in  the  exuber- 
ance of  his  joy  had  forgotten.  Ah  Moy  set  the 
rice  before  the  sacred  emblem  as  though  it 
might,  in  some  mysterious  way,  appease  the 
wrath  of  an  angry  God. 

It  was  ten  o'clock  when  a  shaft  of  sunlight 


270  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

flashed  through  the  port  hole  and  told  the  girls 
that  the  fog  had  cleared  and  the  day  was  beau- 
tiful. Just  then  a  Chinese  servant  came  in  to 
gather  up  the  sheets  and  pillow  cases  and  Wing 
mustered  up  courage  to  inquire  of  him  what 
was  likely  to  happen  to  them. 

"Tell  me,  oh  tell  me,  what  those  people  will 
do  with  us,"  she  said. 

"I  do  not  know,"  he  answered  kindly.  "1 
think  Quong  Lung  will  some  pretty  soon."  Be- 
fore he  had  finished  speaking  there  was  a  clatter 
of  light  footsteps  on  the  stairs  and  a  party  of 
women  came  down.  They  expressed  great 
pleasure  at  finding  the  girls,  and  sat  down  and 
chatted  so  pleasantly  that  the  slaves  felt  sure 
the  ladies  had  come  in  their  behalf.  This  hope 
lightened  their  fears  and  they  smiled  as  the 
ladies  made  reference  to  them. 

Soon  another  figure,  which  they  both  re- 
joiced to  see,  came  down  the  stairs.  It  was  no 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  271 

other  than  Dr.  Richardson.  Wing  sprang  into 
her  arms  and  nestled  her  head  upon  her  bosom, 
and  the  doctor  looked  down  upon  her  as  a 
mother  looks  upon  her  own. 

"This  is  the  half-breed  girl  of  whom  you  have 
heard,"  explained  she  to  her  associates. 

"Yes,  doctor,"  said  Miss  Stevens,  who  was 
matron  of  the  missionary  home,  "I  see  you  have 
been  at  work  on  your  voyage  and  I  am  in- 
clined to  yield  the  palm  to  you." 

"Well,"  said  the  doctor,  "I  see  the  angel 
that  is  imprisoned  in  this  block  of  stone  and  I 
would  fain  be  the  instrument,  in  the  hands  of 
God,  of  liberating  it." 

"Yes,  but  we  who  have  been  in  the  work  the 
longest  and  can  read  the  symptoms,  are  rather 
doubtful,"  said  Miss  Stevens. 

"We  make  sad  mistakes  about  symp- 
toms," replied  the  doctor,  "the  uneasy  longings 
of  the  Eurasian,  as  a  class,  may  as  well  be 


272  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

symptoms  of  genius,  or  of  mighty  love,  as 
symptoms  of  evil.  I  fear  the  idea  of  our  own 
superiority  is  a  thin  romance  upon  which  we 
have  fed  until  it  has  warped  our  judgment." 

This  sharp  repartee  was  an  offense  to  Miss 
Stevens,  who  replied: 

"I  prefer  your  prescriptions,  doctor,  to  your 
religious  opinions." 

But  she  turned  and,  looking  squarely  into 
the  doctor's  face,  asked, 

"What  can  you  do  for  the  girl  ?" 

"Why,"  explained  the  doctor,  "first  save  her 
from  Quong  Lung  and  then  save  her  from  her- 
self." 

"She  is  of  a  class  hard  to  manage,"  said  the 
missionary,  "we  have  them  occasionally  at  the 
home  and  they  are  apt  to  make  trouble;  the 
other  one  is  easily  saved." 

"The  other  one  is  already  saved,"  responded 
the  doctor  rather  tartly,  "she  has  behind  her 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  273 

ages  upon  ages  of  virtuous  ancestors  and  she 
does  not  need  our  help." 

At  this  moment  the  steward  came  and  re- 
quested them  all  to  go  on  deck  and  meet  the 
inspectors.  The  whole  party  arose  and  tripped 
lightly  up  the  stairs,  followed  by  the  doctor  who 
still  held  Wing  fast  by  the  hand.  As  they 
walked  toward  the  gang  plank  they  saw  a  num- 
ber of  uniformed  officials  in  close  conversation 
with  Brother  Jones,  while  a  little  apart  stood 
Quong  Lung  and  the  peace  talker,  Ah  Foon.  A 
Chinese  interpreter  instructed  the  girls  to  hand 
over  their  passports  to  the  inspector;  this  they 
understood  and,  without  hesitation,  obeyed 
He  was  a  kindly,  well-fed  man,  this  official,  and 
he  smiled  upon  the  girls  as  they  timidly  pre- 
sented their  papers. 

"The  law  works  cruelty  upon  such  as  these," 
he  said,  "at  the  same  time  unfolding  the 
transcript  of  the  Kwan  Yin  record.  He  read 


274  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

the  document  carefully,  and  with  a  perplexed 
look,  handed  it  to  his  brother  inspector  who  also 
read  it. 

"It  is  certainly  unusual.  I  do  not  remember 
ever  to  have  seen  anything  like  it.  It  may  be. 
all  right,  but  I  should  not  be  willing  to  let  her 
go  ashore  without  consulting  someone  higher 
in  authority  than  myself." 

"Yes,"  agreed  the  first  inspector,  "Quong 
Lung  is  a  shrewd  fellow  and  we  might  be  mis- 
led by  some  of  his  tricks." 

They  then  unfolded  Ah  Moy's  passport. 

"This  one  is  all  right,"  said  the  first  in- 
spector, "I  remember  that  when  Quong  Lung 
went  away  he  took  a  young  woman  with  him." 

"It  may  be  all  right,  but  I  think  we  ought  to 
be  very  careful.  We  have  made  a  number  of 
mistakes  in  these  matters,  and  I  do  not  like  to 
take  the  responsibility." 

Then  turning  to  Ah  Moy,  he  asked : 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  275 

"Can  you  remember  where  you  were  born, 
little  one?" 

Ah  Moy  made  no  reply,  but  Quong  Lung  and 
his  friend,  Ah  Foon,  threw  themselves  into  the 
breach  and  declared  that  she  was  born  in  Cali- 
fornia. Here  Brother  Jones  interrupted : 

"It  cannot  be,  I  have  seen  too  many  China- 
men to  believe  a  word  of  it." 

Thus  the  two  forces  met  and  clashed  and  the 
inspectors,  not  knowing  what  to  do,  very  wisely 
decided  to  do  nothing. 

But  Doctor  Richardson  volunteered  to  look 
for  Wing's  father  and  promised  if  she  found 
him  to  report  to  the  main  office  on  Washington 
street.  This  was  a  little  light  on  a  dark  subject 
and  finally  the  inspectors  gave  both  girls  into 
her  charge. 

It  was  now  near  noon  and  as  there  seemed  to 
be  no  other  way  out  of  the  dilemma,  the  doctor 
decided  to  take  the  girls  to  the  mission  home. 


276  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

The  inspector  accompanied  the  little  party  to 
the  street  and  placed  them  all  in  a  carriage. 

As  they  were  rapidly  whirled  away  Ah  Moy 
saw  Quong  Lung  and  Ah  Foon  standing,  in 
close  conversation,  at  the  foot  of  the  wharf.  In 
her  simple  little  heart,  she  thought  that  Ah 
Foon  was  the  rich  merchant  who  was  waiting 
to  make  her  his  wife.  She  saw  in  the  one  short 
moment  as  they  passed  him,  that  his  clothing 
was  of  heavy  silk  and  that  his  stockings  were 
spotlessly  white,  and  she  remembered  the  pang 
that  she  felt  when  she  saw  Ting  Ho  march  past 
her  father's  gate  to  be  no  more  seen  forever. 
She  remembered,  too,  the  story  of  the  great 
dragon  that  carries  off  little  girls  and  she 
wondered  if  she  were  not  even  now  going  to 
the  cave  of  the  infant  ghosts  to  build  sand 
towers  to  be  blown  away  by  the  wind. 

But  although  great  waves  of  sorrow  swept 
through  her  heart,  she  sat  motionless,  waiting 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  277 

to  obey  any  voice  which  should  point  out  a  way 
through  the  darkness  that  surrounded  her, 
while  in  sharp  contrast  sat  Wing,  weeping  and 
clinging  to  Dr.  Richardson. 

It  was  but  a  few  moments  drive  to  the  Home 
and  before  they  had  time  to  understand  what 
was  going  on,  the  heavy  doors  of  the  mission 
closed  upon  them.  Although  the  ladies  were 
very  kind  they  took  the  girls  to  a  secure  room, 
beyond  danger  of  ingress  or  egress;  for  they 
had  learned  by  past  experience  to  allow  no 
opportunity  for  escape. 

An  assistant  helped  the  girls  to  wash  and 
readjust  their  clothing,  but  she  was  a  Can- 
tonese and  no  conversation  could  be  entered 
upon.  She  treated  them  kindly,  however,  and 
when  they  were  ready,  led  them  to  a  large  room 
where  there  were  many  Chinese  girls.  None 
of  these  spoke  the  language  of  the  Honan 
Province,  but  the  kindness  in  their  manner  and 


278  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

the  happy  look  in  their  faces,  allayed  the  fears 
of  the  slaves  and  they  soon  began  to  look  about 
the  building  which  seemed  palatial  to  them. 
The  wonderful  conveniences  of  water  and  gas, 
the  large  rooms,  the  spring  beds  appeared  mar- 
vels of  luxury.  The  piano,  so  much  larger  than 
any  musical  instrument  they  had  ever  seen 
before,  astonished  them,  and  when  a  class  of 
girls  lifted  up  their  voices  and  sang  with  it, 
they  laughed  quite  merrily. 

After  an  hour  or  so  in  the  parlor,  they  arose 
and  signified  to  one  of  the  girls  that  they  would 
like  to  return  to  their  room  and,  after  bowing 
three  times  very  gracefully  withdrew. 

When  they  were  safely  in  their  room,  Ah 
Moy  said  to  Wing: 

"How  it  all  happens,  I  cannot  tell,  but  these 
are  the  very  same  kind  of  people  that  I  used  to 
see  near  my  old  home  and  my  father  liked  them 
not." 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  279 

"But,"  said  Wing,  "they  are  kind,  and  my 
doctor  is  good.  I  wonder  if  they  are  all  like 
her." 

"My  father  used  to  say  they  were  all  alike," 
answered  Ah  Moy  rather  dubiously. 

All  day  the  girls  tried  to  lift  the  veil  which 
had  so  mysterious  fallen  across  their  way. 
They  talked  of  Quong  Lung  and  his  friend ;  of 
the  long  sea-voyage  and  the  fruit  and  flowers 
of  Hawaii  and  as  the  moon  came  out  and  the 
roar  of  the  great  city  began  to  hush,  Ah  Moy 
heard  the  bells  of  the  old  Tien  Dong  calling 
the  saints  to  prayer.  In  her  uncomplaining 
sorrow,  she  loosened  her  long  black  hair  and 
with  soft,  proud  eyes,  turned  her  face  to  the 
east. 

No  thought  had  she  of  blaming  any  one  for 
the  sorrow  that  had  come  upon  her ;  no  thought 
had  she  of  asking  God  to  lighten  her  burden. 
To  face  a  sea  of  troubles  and  to  act  rightly  her 


280  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

part,  in  the  complex  relation  she  bore  to  it,  was 
the  realization  of  her  Oriental  training,  and  if 
all  failed,  to  use  the  knife — the  knife  that  her 
father  had  given  her,  the  knife  that  was  always 
in  her  sleeve.  A  vague  swarm  of  spirits  called 
to  her  from  out  of  the  past,  counseling  her  to 
acquit  herself  so  as  to  honor  her  family  name. 

Thus  the  night  and  another  day  wore  away 
and  early  the  following  morning  a  Chinese 
maid  came  to  the  door  and  offered  to  assist 
them  to  dress,  for  it  was  now  Sunday  and  all 
must  be  prepared  for  the  morning  service. 
She  could  not  make  herself  very  clearly  under- 
stood, but  she  succeeded  in  dressing  them  neatly 
and  in  taking  them  down  to  breakfast  in  time. 

Miss  Stevens  knew  how  to  assuage  the  grief 
in  human  hearts  and  she  allowed  the  girls  to 
assist  in  the  work,  especially  in  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  flowers.  Before  eleven  o'clock 
there  came  a  number  of  Chinamen  with  hymn 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  281 

books  in  their  hands,  who  gathered  around  the 
piano  to  practice  the  hymns  that  were  to  be 
used  in  the  service  and  to  assist  in  arranging 
the  chairs  and  other  details.  The  leader  of  the 
choir  was  a  pretty  young  lady  who  chatted  with 
the  singers  and  received  presents  in  the  form 
of  tea  and  silk  and  sometimes  of  more  sub- 
stantial things.  The  deadly  discords  they  made 
and  the  Cantonese  they  jabbered  between  the 
hymns  only  elicited  from  her  a  laugh,  or  a 
command  to  try  it  again.  No  objection  was 
made  to  joss  sticks  or  Buddhas  printed  on  silk 
handkerchiefs;  for  experience  had  taught  the 
missionaries  that  toleration  was  a  law  they 
must  obey. 

Precisely  at  eleven  o'clock.  Brother  Jones 
opened  the  service  with  prayer.  After  thanking 
the  Heavenly  Father  for  their  safe  arrival  and 
for  all  the  blessings  of  life,  he  alluded  to  the 
great  struggle  going  on  in  China  and  gave  a 


282  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

resume  of  the  work  of  the  missionaries  in  that 
country.  Then  he  closed  by  asking  the  gentle 
Jesus  to  visit  His  wrath  upon  the  slave  dealer. 
A  dangerous  sense  of  humor  came  twinkling 
into  the  eyes  of  the  Chinamen;  but  they  sup- 
pressed it  and  kept  a  kindly  bearing  toward 
their  visitor. 

After  the  service,  Miss  Stevens  very  adroitly 
cut  short  any  discussion  by  inviting  all  present 
into  the  dining  room  to  partake  of  a  cup  of  tea. 

"The  work  here  has  taught  me,"  she  said  to 
a  friend,  "that  it  is  hopeless  to  argue." 

"Yes,"  said  the  lady  who  had  herself  been 
in  the  service,  "Chinamen  cannot  conceive  of 
Jesus  as  a  God  of  Vengeance." 

Poor  Brother  Jones!  His  illusion  about 
retribution  clung  to  him  like  garments  long 
worn.  With  a  mind  biting  at  every  creed, 
except  his  own,  the  Chinese  seemed  to  him  like 
so  many  insects  and  he  winced  under  the  com- 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  283 

promises  that  he  saw  the  missionaries  making. 
The  two  girls  watched  the  strange  service 
and  the  luncheon  that  followed  it  and  saw 
the  congregation  depart  without  evincing  a 
shadow  of  surprise.  It  was  Ah  Moy's  idea  of 
a  well  bred  girl  to  "keep  the  face"  and  Wing 
followed  her  example  with  exceeding  cunning. 
Although  they  felt  that  they  were  objects  of 
comment,  they  managed  to  appear  very  much 
at  ease.  A  number  of  women  called  during  the 
afternoon  and  asked  to  see  the  girls,  and  one 
richly  attired  lady  proposed  to  adopt  them ;  but 
Miss  Stevens  informed  her  that,  for  the  present 
at  least,  they  had  no  jurisdiction  over  them. 

"They  are  slaves,"  she  said,  "and  sometimes 
we  are  obliged  to  leave  these  matters  to  the 
courts." 

"But  is  there  no  way  to  compel  the  courts?" 
asked  the  lady. 

"No,"  replied  Miss  Stevens,  "unfortunately, 
the  courts  can  compel  us." 


284  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

In  this  way  a  week  slipped  by  and  the  girls 
were  becoming  accustomed  to  their  surround- 
ings. The  pale  faces  and  blue  eyes  had  no 
more  terrors  for  them  and  although  they  could 
not  understand  all  that  went  on  about  them, 
confidence  was  growing  and  the  fact  that  they 
were  occupied  with  useful  duties  began  to  make 
them  feel  at  home.  When  they  were  entrusted 
with  dainty  work  their  nimble  fingers  never 
tired  until  it  was  finished  and  a  smile  of  appro- 
bation received. 

But  another  day  brought  a  surprise  for  the 
whole  family.  Not  only  the  girls,  but  all  the 
missionaries  were  thrown  into  the  greatest 
possible  excitement  by  the  arrival  of  Dr. 
Richardson,  who  came  to  inform  them  that  the 
father  of  Wing  had  lately  died  and  left  a  large 
fortune.  They  could  hardly  believe  it  when  the 
doctor  intimated  that,  in  all  probability,  Wing 
was  more  than  a  millionaire,  "for,"  said  she, 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  285 

"Ukiah  Grant  lost  his  wife  some  years  before 
his  own  death  and  there  are  no  children  except 
Wing  to  inherit." 

When  W^ing  saw  the  doctor  she  flew  into  her 
arms,  although  not  able  to  comprehend  the 
news.  Miss  Stevens,  however,  grasped  the 
situation  at  once. 

"The  most  practical  thing  you  can  do  now," 
said  she,  "is  to  apply  to  the  court  for  letters  of 
guardianship  and,  if  successful,  try  your 
theories  upon  your  protege.  But/'  she  added, 
"that  would  interfere  with  your  work  in 
China." 

"My  work  in  China  is  finished,"  answered 
ihe  doctor,  "I  have  seen  enough  to  convince  me 
that  my  duty  is  to  my  own  people.  I  hear  the 
call  of  the  Aryan  race  and  it  is  a  call  of  distress. 
I  hear  it  and  its  echo,  and  I  should  be  less  than 
a  patriot  if  I  did  not  respond." 

"Let  us  pray  for  success,"  said  Miss  Stevens 


286  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

doubtfully,  "but  you  know  the  difficulties,  do 
you  not  ?" 

"Yes,  I  know  there  are  difficulties,  but  I  see 
beyond  them.  If  my  services  are  of  any  value 
to  mankind,  it  must  be  along  the  line  of  teaching 
the  meaning  of  that  great  symbol,  the  serpent, 
as  it  is  taught  to  the  children  of  Asia." 

Again  Miss  Stevens  said  doubtingly,  "Let 
us  pray  for  success.  But  what  is  your  plan 
about  Wing?" 

"Just  what  you  outlined  in  your  first  remark," 
replied  the  doctor,  "I  intend  to  apply  to  the 
courts  for  letters  of  guardianship  and,  if  suc- 
cessful, to  educate  her  for  a  medical  missionary. 
It  is  the  noblest  of  work  and  it  would  be  poetic 
justice,  would  it  not,  to  see  the  abandoned  child 
of  lust  turn  upon  the  vice  that  is  gnawing  at 
her  throat  and  help  stamp  it  out." 

"Good  has  come  out  of  Nazareth,"  said  Miss 
Stevens,  "perhaps  it  will  again." 


CHAPTER  FOURTEEN  287 

Dr.  Richardson  had  now  fully  determined 
upon  her  course.  She  took  her  departure,  but 
next  morning  was  early  at  the  home  with  a 
new  suit  of  clothes  and  the  never-to-be-for- 
gotten umbrella  of  the  Chinese  woman.  As 
soon  as  Wing  was  suitably  dressed,  she  took 
her  to  the  Probate  Court  and  had  her  name 
entered  as  the  daughter  of  Ukiah  Grant. 

There  was  much  surprise,  and  adverse  claim- 
ants protested,  but  Quong  Lung  had  done  his 
work  too  well  to  admit  of  a  doubt.  The  tran- 
script signed,  sealed  and  delivered  by  Woo 
Chow,  in  his  official  capacity  as  recorder  of  the 
Kwan  Yin  temple,  was  easily  verified  by  the 
Chinese  minister  plenipotentiary,  and  the  judge, 
glad  enough  to  see  a  way  out  of  the  wrangle 
that  distant  relatives  had  begun  over  the  prop- 
erty, recognized  Wing  as  the  daughter  of  the 
dead  millionaire. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

APOLOGIA. 

In  vain  hands  bent  on  sacrifice, 

Or  clasped  in  prayer,  we  see, 

The  ways  of  God  are  not  exactly 

What  those  ways  should  be. 

The  swindler  and  the  ruffian 

Lead  pleasant  lives  enough, 

While  judgment  overtakes  the  good, 

With  many  a  sharp  rebuff. 

The  swaggering  bully  stalks  along, 

As  swaggering  as  you  please, 

While  those  who  never  miss  their  prayers 

Are  martyrs  to  disease. 

So  if  great  God  Almighty  fails 

To  keep  the  balance  true, 

What  can  we  hope  that  paltry, 

Mortal  magistrates  will  do." 

—  Hsi  Chin,  A.  D. 


Another  week  had  passed.  Wing  had  gone 
away  with  Dr.  Richardson;  and  Ah  Moy  had 
settled  down  and  was  helping  the  girls  with  the 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN  289 

sweeping  and  the  dusting,  while  a  few  words 
of  English  were  creeping  into  her  vocabulary. 
Miss  Stevens  had  almost  concluded  that  Quong 
Lung  had  given  up  the  fight,  when  one  morn- 
ing, just  as  she  was  marshaling  the  week's 
work  into  order,  the  bell  was  rung  by  a  pom- 
pous looking  official. 

Out  of  his  side  pocket  projected  a  package  of 
legal  documents  which  he  instinctively  grasped 
as  the  door  was  opened  by  a  demure  little 
Chinese  girl. 

"Can  I  see  the  person  in  authority  here," 
he  asked  at  the  same  time  setting  one  foot 
firmly  over  the  threshold. 

"Do  you  mean  Miss  Wilkins,  or  the  matron?" 
timidly  asked  the  girl. 

"I  mean  the  person  in  authority,"  replied  the 
official,  in  such  a  tone  that  Sin  Soy's  almond 
shaped  eyes  instinctively  turned  toward  her 
nose. 


290  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"Then  you  may  be  seated,  sir,  and  I  will  look 
for  the  matron." 

The  official  took  the  chair  nearest  the  door 
and  Sin  Soy  fled  through  the  hall  toward  that 
part  of  the  house  where  she  thought  Miss 
Stevens  most  likely  to  be  found. 

"He  looks  like  a  policeman,"  she  said,  as  she 
rushed  into  the  dining  room,  "he  looks  like  a 
policeman  and  he  wants  to  see  you." 

Miss  Stevens  threw  off  the  long  white  apron 
she  was  wearing,  ran  one  hand  hurriedly  over 
her  hair,  and  proceeded  to  the  sitting  room. 
She  was  not  altogether  surprised  when  her 
visitor  served  her  with  an  order  of  court. 

"Have  you  in  your  charge  a  Chinese  girl, 
lately  arrived,  whom  they  call  Ah  Moy,"  he 
asked. 

"I  have,"  replied  the  matron,  slightly  flush- 
ing. At  this  the  officer,  handing  her  a  copy  of 
the  writ  of  Habeas  Corpus,  said : 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN  291 

"Then  you  must  bring  her  into  court  that  the 
judge  may  decide  to  whom  she  shall  be  given. 
She  is  claimed  by  Quong  Lung  as  his  daughter, 
is  she  not?" 

"I  presume  she  is,"  replied  Miss  Stevens, 
"but  is  there  no  escape  from  this  proceeding? 
My  duties  are  pressing  and  the  uncertainty  of 
justice  makes — " 

"These  are  questions  for  the  court  to  de- 
cide," interrupted  the  officer,  "the  order  is 
mandatory  and  must  be  obeyed." 

Saying  this,  he  tipped  his  hat  and  descended 
the  steps  to  the  street. 

As  soon  as  he  was  gone,  Miss  Stevens 
gathered  her  little  band  of  assistants  together 
and  they  decided  that  there  was  no  way  to 
escape  the  ordeal  of  again  going  into  court. 

"We  must  trust  the  good  Father,"  said  Miss 
Wilkins. 

"And  our  lawyer,"  dryly  remarked  Miss 
Jones. 


292  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"If  we  could  only  send  her  away,"  lamented 
Miss  Stevens,  "we  have  so  many  friends  in  Los 
Angeles  who  would  have  kept  her  out  of  sight, 
but  we  should  have  done  it  sooner.  Now  that 
the  papers  are  served,  I  fear  it  is  too  late." 

Miss  Jordan,  another  missionary  now  sug- 
gested that  they  send  for  Brother  Jones. 

"None  of  us  have  any  testimony  to  give  in  the 
case,"  said  she,  "at  least  no  such  testimony  as  a 
court  requires.  To  be  sure  we  know,  but  to 
tell  the  court  how  we  know  is  another  thing." 

In  the  midst  of  their  discussion  Brother 
Jones  came  in.  He  had  heard  of  the  trouble 
and  knew  that  he  should  be  an  important  wit- 
ness. But  when  he  thought  the  matter  over 
seriously,  he  saw  that  he  could  only  swear  that 
Quong  Lung  looked  Cantonese,  while  Ah  Moy 
looked  every  inch  northern  born.  Some  of  the 
missionaries  believed  in  the  "blessed  lie,"  but 
now  that  the  time  was  ripe  to  put  this  into 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN  293 

practice,  it  seemed  very  difficult  to  do.  Quong 
Lung's  attorney  had  the  reputation  of  being 
one  of  the  best  in  the  city  and  they  knew  he 
would  pour  such  hot  shot  upon  the  witnesses 
on  cross  examination  that  the  truth  would  be 
their  only  protection. 

The  fact  that  they  could  not  speak  under- 
standingly  with  Ah  Moy  made  the  situation  still 
more  difficult  and  taking  it  all  in  all  there 
seemed  no  silver  lining  to  the  cloud.  So  they 
reluctantly  proceeded  to  prepare  Ah  Moy  for 
the  court.  A  Chinese  inmate  of  the  home 
arranged  her  dress  in  a  way  suitable  for  the 
occasion  and  other  inmates  vied  with  each  other 
in  lending  such  articles  of  adornment  as  are 
dear  to  the  heart  of  girlhood.  Ah  Moy  sub- 
mitted with  calm  reserve,  but  in  her  heart  of 
hearts  there  was  sorrow  lest  she  should  never 
again  see  Quong  Lung  and  the  rich  merchant 
whom  she  felt  sure  was  waiting  to  make  her  his 


294  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

wife.  All  the  distance  between  China  and  San 
Francisco  was  not  so  fatal  to  her  happiness  as 
the  one  wall  between  the  mission  Home  and 
Chinatown;  and  she  felt  while  being  dressed 
that,  if  an  opportunity  presented  itself,  she 
should  rush  to  the  arms  of  her  own  people. 

The  missionaries  had  fears  that  their  little 
bird  might  fly  away  at  the  slightest  provoca- 
tion, and  took  a  close  carriage,  guarding  her  on 
both  sides,  as  they  rattled  over  the  cobble-stone 
streets  to  the  great  building  where  law — and 
sometimes  justice — is  administered.  The  judge 
was  disposing  of  another  case  when  Miss 
Stevens  and  Miss  Wilkins,  one  on  either  side  of 
the  Chinese  girl,  entered.  The  marshal  saw 
them  and  conducted  them  to  seats  within  the 
rail. 

Very  soon  Quong  Lung  and  his  friend,  Ah 
Foon,  entered  the  room  and  were  about  to  take 
seats  near  the  missionaries;  but  the  marshal 


CHAPTER   FIFTEEN  295 

motioned  the  Chinamen  back  and  they  were 
obliged  to  remain  at  a  respectful  distance. 

The  court  room  was  filled  with  a  throng  made 
up  of  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  men — a  throng 
as  unlike  the  gatherings  to  which  the  mission- 
aries were  accustomed,  as  a  church  congrega- 
tion is  unlike  the  crowd  at  a  race  course.  Men 
of  the  criminal  type,  tramps,  and  women  with 
diamond  hat  pins  occupied  the  available 
seats.  To  all  appearance,  the  stately  judge  was 
oblivious  to  everything  except  the  doings  of  a 
little  circle  of  lawyers  before  him,  who  were 
reviewing  the  testimony  in  a  murder  case  which 
had  just  been  tried.  An  attorney  whom  his 
brethren  at  the  bar  addressed  affectionately  as 
"General"  called  the  attention  of  the  court  to 
the  perverseness  of  the  witnesses  for  the  prose- 
cution and,  according  to  his  version,  all  who 
had  testified  against  his  client  had  done  so  from 
pure  malice. 


296  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

"I  should  not  have  undertaken  this  case," 
said  he,  in  the  language  which  constitutes  the 
eloquence  of  the  bar,  "only  that  I  feel,  for  the 
honor  of  the  law,  that  every  accused  person 
should  have  the  opportunity  to  clear  his  skirts 
of  a  criminal  charge." 

He  reviewed  the  testimony  and  the  case  had 
lumbered  along  for  an  hour,  when  the  "Gen- 
eral" drew  a  little  nearer  to  the  jury  box  and 
ran  his  eye,  for  one  strained  moment,  along 
the  line  of  twelve  men. 

"I  need  not  remind  you,  gentlemen  of  the 
jury,"  he  said,  "of  the  awful  tyranny  of  a  mis- 
carriage of  justice.  In  a  case  like  this  where 
the  testimony  is  almost  entirely  circumstantial, 
it  is  your  bounden  duty  to  give  the  benefit  of 
every  doubt  to  the  prisoner.  The  law  requires 
that  there  must  be  no  assumption  of  crime ;  but 
a  chain  of  flawless,  clear-cut  and  incontrovert- 
ible proof."  Then,  moving  still  nearer,  he 


CHAPTER   FIFTEEN  297 

launched  himself  into  the  realm  of  fiction  and 
drew  a  picture  of  the  agony  and  helplessness  of 
the  man  whose  life  they  held  in  their  hands. 
He  painted  in  glowing  colors  the  vine-clad  and 
blossom-scented  home  from  whence  his  client 
came  and  he  sketched  at  its  window,  a  wife  with 
white,  clenched  hands.  Then  he  turned  their 
vision  backward  to  a  Christian  mother  whose 
grey  hairs  would  go  down  to  the  grave  in  sor- 
row unless  they  restored  to  her  her  son,  and 
concluded  by  saying : 

"Gentlemen  of  the  jury,  it  is  for  you  to  decide 
this  momentous  question  of  guilty  or  not  guilty. 
The  responsibility  is  upon  you  to  say  whether 
this  man  shall  be  launched  into  the  darkness  of 
the  tomb  or  whether  he  shall  return  to  the 
bosom  of  his  family.  I  leave  it  to  you,  be- 
lieving in  your  judgment  and  trusting  in  your 
mercy." 

The  large  audience  had  been  spell-bound  by 


298  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

this  eloquence  and  sat  with  bated  breath.  The 
eyes  of  the  two  missionaries  scanned  the 
prisoner  with  an  expression  of  sympathy  and 
interest.  They  had  lost  their  impatience  at  the 
delay  and  sat  with  others,  anxiously  awaiting 
the  return  of  the  jury.  The  suspense  was  of 
short  duration,  however,  for  in  less  than  ten 
minutes  the  twelve  men  filed  slowly  back  and 
the  voice  of  their  foreman  rang  out  clear  and 
loud: 

^Not  guilty,  your  Honor." 

A  breath  of  relief  swept  the  assemblage ;  the 
attorneys  gathered  about  the  "General"  to  con> 
gratulate  him,  and  the  crowd,  after  long  and 
loud  cheering,  moved  slowly  toward  the  door. 

Miss  Stevens  and  Miss  Wilkins  had  been 
greatly  impressed  with  the  eloquence  of  the 
lawyer  and  made  no  attempt  to  conceal  their 
pleasure  at  the  happy  conclusion  of  the  case; 
but  when  the  "General"  came  nearer  to  speak  to 


CHAPTER   FIFTEEN  299 

their  own  attorney  upon  a  matter  of  business, 
the  pedestal  on  which  he  stood  began  to  fall 
to  pieces.  A  dissipated  breath,  a  shrewd  glance 
of  the  eye  and  a  familiar,  "how  are  you,  Mr. 
Brown,"  called  their  attention  to  him  and  in 
another  moment  they  heard  their  attorney  say, 
in  a  jocular  way : 

"That  was  well  done,  General;  it  was  about 
the  only  thing  you  could  do  for  your  client,  for 
the  testimony  was  all  against  you." 

"Yes,"  respondent  the  "General,"  "that  fel- 
low was  as  guilty  as  Satan,  and  all  I  could  do 
was  to  work  upon  the  sympathies  of  the  jury." 

"I  suppose  you  got  your  fee  in  advance,"  said 
Mr.  Brown. 

"Yes,  I  am  always  on  the  safe  side,  so  far  as 
that  goes,"  replied  the  eloquent  one,  "can  I  do 
anything  for  you  in  the  matter  you  have  in 
hand?" 

"No;  my  case  is  only  a  trifling  affair — one 


300  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

of  those  Chinese  slave  girls,  you  know;  but  I 
want  to  see  you  this  afternoon  about  Higgins 
vs.  Higgins;  there  is  a  good  ten  thousand  dol- 
lars involved  in  that  case." 

Miss  Stevens  turned  as  pale  as  ashes. 

"What  can  we  expect  from  our  pathetic  little 
case  in  a  place  like  this?"  she  said  to  Miss 
Wilkins. 

"Nothing;  I  am  afraid,  nothing,"  was  the 
answer.  , 

By  this  time  the  court  room  was  nearly  de- 
serted and  the  only  disturbing  sound  was  the 
chatter  of  a  dozen  Chinese  who  had  dropped  in 
to  see  how  Quong  Lung  would  get  out  of  his 
trouble.  The  judge,  who  had  retired  for  a  few 
moments  to  his  chambers,  returned,  the  sheriff 
shouted  "silence"  and  immediately  the  case  of 
Quong  Lung  versus  the  Occidental  Board  of 
Missions  was  called.  Both  attorneys  were 
ready  and  the  witnesses  came  forward  to 
testify. 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN  301 

Quong  Lung  was  the  first  to  take  the  stand. 
He  testified  clearly  and  pointedly  that  Ah  Moy 
was  his  daughter,  twenty  years  old,  and  born 
in  California.  Upon  cross  examination,  he 
kept  his  story  straight  and  told  it  convincingly. 

"I  came  to  California  in  1872,"  he  said  in 
response  to  the  inquiry  of  the  attorney  for  the 
missionaries. 

"How  many  wives  did  you  bring  with  you?" 
asked  he  with  the  air  of  a  man  who  has  caught 
the  witness  in  a  lie. 

"Three  wives;  all  the  time  large  family, 
—all  the  time  plenty  of  trouble  with  the 
missionaries." 

"That's  all,"  replied  the  lawyer,  "we  do  not 
want  to  hear  anything  about  your  troubles." 

Then  Ah  Foon  was  sworn  and  testified  that 
he  had  known  Ah  Moy  from  babyhood  and  that 
she  was  the  daughter  of  Quong  Lung,  born  in 
California  and  twenty  years  old. 


302  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

A  look  of  satisfaction  beamed  on  the  face  of 
Quong  Lung's  attorney  as  he  turned  the  wit- 
ness over  to  Mr.  Brown  for  cross  examination, 
for  he  knew  by  long  experience  how  hopeless 
would  be  any  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  defend- 
ants to  go  very  far  into  the  family  life  of  Quong 
Lung,  or  any  other  resident  of  Chinatown. 

"No  questions,"  said  the  lawyer,  seeing  how 
difficult  his  case  was  getting.  At  this,  with  a 
businesslike  air,  the  attorney  for  the  plaintiff 
handed  the  judge  what  purported  to  be  the 
passport  of  Ah  Moy.  The  judge  read  the 
paper  over  very  carefully  and  said :  "It  seems 
to  be  in  conformity  with  the  law.  Let  us  hear 
the  witnesses  for  the  defense." 

Brother  Jones  now  stepped  forward,  but 
something  in  his  manner  seemed  to  be  asking 
for  lenity.  He  swore  that  he  was  a  passenger 
on  the  Hong  Kong  Maru  and  that  he  had  only 
known  Ah  Moy  for  the  short  period  of  twentv- 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN  303 

seven  days.  He  thought  she  was  a  slave,  be- 
cause she  appeared  to  be  northern  bred,  while 
according  to  his  judgment,  Quong  Lung  was 
clearly  Cantonese. 

"It  was  common  talk  on  the  ship  that  Quong 
Lung  was  a  slave  dealer,"  said  he. 

"Objected  to,"  said  the  attorney  for  Quong 
Lung,  "on  the  ground  that  it  is  incompetent, 
immaterial  and  irrelevant." 

"Objection  sustained,"  ruled  the  judge, 
"tell  what  you  know  of  your  own  personal 
knowledge." 

Then  Brother  Jones  had  to  admit  that  of  his 
own  personal  knowledge,  he  knew  nothing. 
Neither  could  Miss  Stevens,  or  Miss  Wilkins, 
say  anything  to  help  the  case.  They  requested 
that  Ah  Moy  be  put  on  the  stand  to  testify 
through  an  interpreter;  but  the  judge  objected 
on  the  ground  of  her  having  no  knowledge  of 
the  solemnity  of  an  oath.  But  he  took  her  to 


304  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

his  chambers  and  there  tried  to  elicit  from  her 
something  to  guide  him  in  his  decision.  Owing 
to  the  fact,  however,  that  his  conscience  had 
been  reduced,  by  a  purely  legal  process,  to  a 
tacit  desire  to  fulfill  the  letter  of  the  law, 
nothing  but  such  considerations  came  to  his 
mind.  As  far  as  anything  could  be  wrung  from 
Ah  Moy,  the  facts  were  just  as  Quong  Lung 
had  declared  them  to  be.  The  sight  of  the 
foreigners  did  not  frighten  her  as  it  had  done 
at  first  and  she  could  now  remember  the  words, 
"born  in  California".  These  she  repeated  par- 
rot-like and  then  became  a  perfect  blank.  No 
smile  nor  frown  could  wring  from  her  another 
word.  The  repose  of  her  bearing  and  her  per- 
sistent refusal  to  talk  confirmed  the  judge  in 
his  opinion  that  everything  was  as  it  should  be, 
and  he  decided  to  let  her  go  with  whomsoever 
she  pleased. 

"I  see  nothing  in  the  case  to  warrant  sus- 
picion," he  said. 


CHAPTER  FIFTEEN  305 

But  the  missionaries,  the  people  standing 
about  the  room  and  even  the  janitor  knew  that 
another  slave  girl  had  been  added  to  those 
already  in  Chinatown. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

"My  half-exhausted  draught  hath  nothing  left 
But  thick  and  muddy  dregs.    Fatigued,  bereft, 
I  pant  and  ask  a  cooling  glass ; 
But  like  a  broken  wheel,  men's  scorn  and  jest, 
I   rise   and   sink   with   none   to   answer   my 

request." 

Poem  by  a  celebrated  general  on  his  banish- 
ment from  his  native  land.  Translated  for  the 
Royal  Asiatic  Society,  at  Shanghai. 

As  soon  as  the  judge  had  rendered  his  de- 
cision, Quong  Lung  made  a  bold  advance  to 
where  Ah  Moy  was  seated  and  Ah  Foon  fol- 
lowed him,  as  the  wolf  follows  in  the  jungle 
path. 

"Come  to  me,"  said  Quong  Lung,  with  de- 
termination in  his  voice,  and  Ah  Moy  made 
not  the  slightest  attempt  to  disobey.  He  took 
her  hand  and  led  her  out  of  the  court  room, 
while  Ah  Foon  took  his  place  as  rear  guard. 


CHAPTER   SIXTEEN  307 

"It  is  uncertain  business,"  said  Ah  Foon, 
when  they  were  safely  outside  the  door. 

"Yes/'  asserted  Ah  Foon,  "but  what  they 
will  do — they  will  do — these  fierce  Americans. 
To  run  the  gauntlet  of  the  court  and  succeed  is 
surely  better  than  to  run  and  lose." 

Quong  Lung  smiled  a  sickly  smile.  The  iron 
that  entered  into  his  soul  was  the  loss  of  money 
that  he  had  sustained,  first  in  Wing's  escape 
and  second,  in  the  heavy  fees  that  he  knew 
would  be  wrung  from  him  by  his  attorney.  He 
made  the  best  of  the  situation,  however,  and 
when  a  hackman  approached  and  asked  if  he 
desired  a  carriage,  he  replied  by  lifting  Ah  Moy 
upon  the  back  seat,  while  he  as  unceremoniously 
flung  himself  upon  the  seat  facing  her.  When 
he  had  instructed  the  driver  where  to  go,  he 
lowered  the  curtains  and  sat  sullenly  until  they 
reached  Chinatown.  There  he  dismissed  the 
hackman  and  led  Ah  Moy  through  a  narrow 


308  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

street  and  up  a  flight  of  stairs  to  a  room  known 
as  the  old  "slave  hall."  A  Chinese  woman  re- 
ceived her  and  took  her  to  a  smaller  room 
where,  on  wooden  boxes,  were  arranged  all  the 
paraphernalia  of  female  adornment,  and  im- 
mediately began  rearranging  her  hair  and 
dress.  She  was  not  cross,  this  old  woman,  as 
Ah  Moy  remembered  Wang  to  have  been;  but 
she  knew  her  business  and  did  it  in  a  most  un- 
ceremonious manner.  Very  soon  Ah  Moy 
looked  her  best,  according  to  the  Oriental  idea, 
and  she  was  then  led  back  to  the  hall. 

It  was  not  long  before  Quong  Lung  returned, 
accompanied  by  a  number  of  Chinamen  who 
were  anxious  to  purchase  wives.  Ah  Moy 
suited  the  most  fastidious  of  them;  but  her 
owner  held  her  at  a  very  high  price.  For  this 
reason  several  days  passed  and  no  sale  was 
effected. 

Meanwhile  the  newspapers  were  exploiting 


CHAPTER   SIXTEEN  309 

some  of  the  facts  about  the  case,  and  the  judge's 
decision,  and  this  aroused  the  fears  of  Quong 
Lung  that  other  legal  procedure  might  be  in- 
stituted. He  therefore  removed  Ah  Moy  to  an- 
other place  in  Chinatown — a  place  which  sees, 
but  tells  no  tales.  Through  dark  passages  and 
dingy  halls,  he  led  the  poor  girl  to  a  room  no 
larger  than  a  cell  and  there  locked  the  door 
upon  her.  Through  the  iron  bars  she  could  see 
other  rooms  like  her  own,  all  opening  into  a 
hallway,  which  was  lighted  only  by  windows 
overhead.  In  each  of  these  little  rooms  were 
young  women  with  painted  faces  and  very  gay 
clothing ;  but  as  Ah  Moy  heard  them  speaking 
only  Cantonese,  she  could  not  enter  into  con- 
versation. From  below,  throbbing  up  through 
the  floor,  came  the  squeaky  tones  of  a  Sam  Sin, 
the  rattle  of  dice  and  the  odor  of  opium  smoke. 
Intuition,  which  teaches  the  young  and  the 
pure,  told  Ah  Moy  that  she  was  now  in  a  dan- 


310  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

gerous  place.  She  looked  about  to  see  if,  per- 
chance, she  might  find  a  way  of  escape,  but  no 
passage  was  visible  in  any  direction.  As  she 
sat,  undecided  what  to  do,  she  heard  a  voice  in 
one  of  the  cells  near  her,  crooning  a  child's 
song  that  she  had  often  heard  in  her  own 
province.  Although  she  could  not  see  the 
person  who  was  singing,  she  spoke  and  asked 
if  there  were  no  way  by  which  she  might  leave 
the  place. 

"No;  oh  no,"  was  the  sad  reply,  "we  are  the 
slaves  of  Quong  Lung,  and  the  only  possible 
way  of  getting  help  is  to  find  some  one  who  will 
carry  a  message  to  the  missionaries.  But  this 
is  hard  to  do,  for  no  one  comes  here  unless  he  is 
sworn  to  secrecy." 

"Oh,"  said  Ah  Moy,  "how  dreadful!  I  have 
just  come  from  the  missionaries  and  now,  how 
glad  I  should  be  to  get  back  to  them !" 

"They  are  kind  people  and  would  help  us,  if 


CHAPTER  SIXTEEN  311 

they  could,"  answered  the  voice,  "but  I  have 
tried  many  times  to  get  someone  to  take  a  mes- 
sage and  have  never  succeeded." 

This  was  discouraging  news  for  little  Ah 
Moy  and,  almost  in  despair,  she  sat  down  to 
think  over  the  situation.  She  drew  from  her 
sleeve  the  knife  which  her  father  had  given  her 
and  fondled  it  almost  as  though  it  were  a  living 
thing.  Until  far  into  the  night  she  waited  un- 
complainingly and  then,  overcome  by  fatigue 
and  anxiety,  she  lay  down  upon  the  bed  and 
dropped  into  a  troubled  sleep.  At  daybreak 
she  was  again  listening  for  the  footsteps  of 
Quong  Lung  whom  she  still  hoped  would  come 
and  bring  her  some  sort  of  relief. 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  she  heard  the  key 
grate  in  her  door  and  he  entered,  bringing  food 
and.  some  articles  of  adornment  which  he  com- 
manded her  to  wear.  He  then  left  her  without 
a  word  and  she  sat  down  alone  to  her  scanty 


312  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

meal.  When  she  had  eaten,  she  combed  her 
long  black  hair  and  again  awaited  calmly  what- 
ever the  Gods  might  have  in  store  for  her. 

Toward  night  the  outer  door  was  suddenly 
thrown  open  and  a  crowd  of  men  pushed  them- 
selves in,  scrambling  as  they  did  so  for  standing 
room  before  the  cells  of  the  prettiest  girls. 
Many  of  these  visitors  were  stupid  with  opium 
and  insolent  in  their  language.  So  much  so 
that  Ah  Moy  felt  the  blood  tingle  in  her  veins 
and  the  fire  flash  in  her  eyes.  One  young 
Chinaman  stopped  before  the  cell  next  to  her 
own  and  remarked  upon  the  beauty  of  its 
occupant  and  the  fineness  of  the  jewelry  she 
wore;  jests  about  her  feet  and  her  eyebrows 
brought  laughter  from  his  fellows  and  then, 
suddenly,  a  bold  hand  pointed  to  Ah  Moy  and 
its  owner  said: 

"This  one  has  only  been  over  a  short  time 
and  they  say  she  is  of  noble  birth." 


CHAPTER   SIXTEEN  313 

"Ah  ha!"  said  another,  "then  she  is  the  little 
girl  that  Quong  Lung  has  had  so  much  trouble 


over." 


"Yes,"  quoth  his  companion,  "she  is  still 
grieving  for  her  parents  and  it  adds  much  to 
her  beauty." 

"She  is  indeed  formed  for  the  offices  of  love," 
remarked  another,  "Quong  Lung  is  a  good 
judge  of  flesh  and  blood  and  I  have  no  doubt  he 
will  make  money  on  his  investment,  not- 
withstanding his  little  difficulty  with  the 
missionaries." 

Ah  Moy  heard  and  was  now  fully  conscious 
of  her  position.  She  felt  that  at  any  moment 
some  one  of  that  lustful  throng  might  present 
himself  within  her  door  and  claim  her  tremb- 
ling body.  She  fled  to  the  furthermost  corner 
of  the  room  and,  like  a  bird  caught  in  a  trap, 
turned  her  face  to  the  wall. 


314  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

The  bell  in  the  old  church  tower  was  striking 
twelve  as  she  heard  the  door  open  behind  her 
and,  upon  looking  around,  saw  a  portly  China- 
man. He  bore  wine  and  sweets  and,  with 
honied  words,  tried  to  persuade  her  to  eat.  Ah 
Moy  was  now  too  desperate  to  hear.  There 
was  roaring  in  her  ears  and  darkness  in  her 
eyes  and  she  could  remember  nothing  but  the 
story  of  the  old  dragon  that  devours  young 
girls.  To  her  this  man  was  nothing  short  of 
such  a  monster.  She  clutched  at  the  wall  in  an 
effort  to  escape  but,  when  she  felt  his  hand 
upon  her,  she  turned  upon  him  with  the  fury 
of  a  wild  cat  and  struck  him  with  the  knife, 
inflicting  such  a  gash  on  his  face  that  he  stag- 
gered through  the  door  and  disappeared. 

It  was  now  near  morning.  The  moon  was 
slipping  down  over  the  house  tops  and  the  fog 
fell  in  cold  damp  sheets  through  the  grating  of 
her  cell.  The  hall  was  deserted  save  for  a  few 


CHAPTER   SIXTEEN  315 

opium  eaters  who  slumbered  in  a  corner,  and 
the  only  sound  Ah  Moy  could  hear  was  the 
rattle  of  an  early  wagon  on  the  cobble  stones 
of  the  street. 

In  sorrow  she  threw  herself  down  upon  the 
bed  and  tried  to  gather  her  distracted  thoughts 
into  something  like  order.  She  prayed  to  the 
God  of  her  fathers,  and  she  droned  a  chant  that 
the  priests  had  taught  her  many  years  before. 
This,  however,  was  the  crucial  test  which 
brought  her  into  a  new  state  of  consciousness. 
When  she  arose  a  spiritual  illumination  shone 
about  the  third  daughter  of  Ching  Fo.  A  calm 
spread  over  her  face  and  shimmered,  like  a  halo, 
about  her  body.  In  her  heart  there  was  no 
more  fear,  for  she  now  trusted  herself  entirely 
the  Gods. 

In  imagination  she  heard  the  gentle  voice  of 
her  ancestors  counseling  her  to  be  brave  and 
fear  not.  She  remembered  a  little  poem  writ- 


316  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

ten   by  Han  Hsi   two  hundred  years   before 

Christ,  and  repeated  it  aloud : 

"Forth  from  the  eastern  gate  my  steed  I  drive, 

And  low  a  cemetery  meets  my  view, 
Aspens  around  in  wild  luxuriance  strive, 
The  paths  are  fringed  with  fir,  and  pine  and 

yew. 
How  fast  the  lights  and  shadows  change  to 

gray, 

How  like  a  summer's  dream  my  life  has  fled, 
How  a  frail  life  is  snuffed  away 

To  sleep  in  silence  with  it's  coffined  dead." 
More  than  ever,  the  ivory-handled  knife 
seemed  a  connecting  link  between  herself  and 
her  parents.  Her  father  had  treasured  it  and 
had  put  it  into  her  hands  as  a  sacred  gift,  and 
now  strangely,  oh  so  strangely,  it  had  come  to 
pass  that  it  was  the  only  thing-  she  had  by 
which  she  could  cut  herself  loose  from  the  in- 
tricate web  of  a  distracted  life. 


CHAPTER   SIXTEEN  317 

One  loving  little  letter  she  scribbled  to  her 
father,  telling  him  that  she  was  going,  like  the 
daughter  of  a  nobleman,  to  join  the  army  of 
her  ancestors. 

"And,  father  dear,"  she  wrote,  "the  Gods 
have  been  good  to  me  for  I  have  escaped  the 
worst  of  all  evils — that  of  disgracing  my  par- 
ents." Then,  in  noble  self-forgetfulness,  she 
added,  "and  father,  you  must  think  better  of  the 
missionaries.  They  tried  to  save  me,  but  I 
could  not  understand."  The  soul  of  the  Far 
East  was  in  every  word. 

That  splendid  scorn  of  death  which  is  the  re- 
sult of  ancestral  training,  reaching  far  back  into 
the  remotest  night  of  forgotten  time,  made  her 
brave  and  lifted  her  out  of  the  dark  waters  that 
threatened  to  engulf  her.  To  her  the  Oriental 
suicide  was  now  a  duty  and  a  sacrament.  She 
knew  that  the  highest  honor  ever  paid  to  women 
in  her  beloved  Cathay  was  paid  to  those  who 


318  THE  THIRD  DAUGHTER 

successfully  protected  themselves  against  dis- 
honor. She  folded  the  sheet  of  white  paper 
which  lay  upon  the  table  into  the  shape  of  a 
lotus  flower  and  then,  with  steady  precision, 
made  a  gash  in  her  throat  from  which  the 
blood  leaped  in  throbbing  jets. 

At  ten  o'clock  they  found  her  stiff  and  cold, 
the  letter  to  her  father  neatly  folded  on  the 
table,  and  the  knife  still  in  her  hand. 

THE  END. 


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